


Strength in Numbers

by skiesinoureyes



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alex Danvers & Winn Schott Jr. Friendship, Danvers Sisters, Domestic Alex Danvers/Maggie Sawyer, Domestic Sanvers, Endgame Alex Danvers/Maggie Sawyer, F/F, Fluff, Kara Danvers/ Lena Luthor - Freeform, Mild Smut, Pam from HR - Freeform, Sanvers - Freeform, SuperCorp, glg, kara x lena - Freeform, lgbtqia, supergirl - Freeform, wlw
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-07
Updated: 2017-06-18
Packaged: 2018-09-30 08:42:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 26
Words: 33,583
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10159067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skiesinoureyes/pseuds/skiesinoureyes
Summary: A series of one shots about the Superfriends and how their lives are made so much better by being together. There is so much love in their little family, and I think that's just beautiful.





	1. Every Scar Tells a Story

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex Danvers has always been proud to show off her scars until one day when Maggie gives her a hickey...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so this is my first bit of fanfic EVER, and it's an original idea. Tbh, I don't really know if it's good or not, so bear with me. I hope you like it!

Alex Danvers had always had some form of scars or bruises, ever since she was a little kid. From minor scrapes as a child falling off of her bike to major flesh wounds from battling it out in the field against whatever new defenses Cadmus had up, Alex’s body always seemed to be an ever-changing tapestry of wounds, but she didn’t mind. She had always liked her scars. They made her feel proud, made her feel important. The way she saw it, every wound told a story, every cut, every scrape, every bruise, had a cause for being there. Every injury meant that she had done something, tried something, that was worth talking about. So, when it came to other people seeing them, she didn’t mind, and when Maggie saw the full scale of her scars and bruises that she had accumulated over the years, she didn’t bat an eyelash, because she knew how they made Alex feel accomplished. Alex had never cared about others seeing her flaws. That is, until the first time Maggie gave her a hickey. The night before, things got pretty heated up at Maggie’s place, and when Alex walked into work the next morning, she could tell something was off. J’onn was staring at her with a puzzled expression on his face.

“What?” 

“Nothing” J’onn exclaimed, seemingly flustered, caught off guard.

“What is it? Is it something about Cadmus?” she demanded.

“No, it’s just…”

“Alex, is that a hickey?” asked Winn.

“What? No, of course not!” responded Alex, even while her hand shot up to conceal the purple mark on her neck. She kept her voice level, the way she had learned to from her years of interrogation training, but she couldn’t help the red blush creeping up her cheeks, making her entire face hot.

“Bow chicka bow wow. Looks like someone got it on last night” taunted Winn, narrowly dodging a smack to the head from Alex.

“Shut up, Winn” she growled.

That night, when Alex got home from work, Maggie met her at the door with a kiss as usual, but when the kiss turned into something more, Maggie could feel that Alex wasn’t completely into it, and being the spectacular girlfriend that she was, Maggie immediately pulled back.

“You good, Danvers?” Maggie inquired, “We can stop if you need”.

“No, I’m fine,” Alex insisted, and went back in for a kiss, but Maggie could tell she was hesitating.

“Ally, come on, you know I’m here for you. You can tell me anything. What’s on your mind?”

“Well… it’s nothing, really, it’s just that I’ve never really been intimate with anyone before you. I mean, I have, just… not in the same way, and… last night, you gave me a hickey without my noticing, and, I don’t know, I guess I’ve never really had a scar before without a story behind it, without a meaning behind it that I couldn’t explain, and this morning, Winn asked about it, and I didn’t really know how to respond, so of course I hit him, or at least I tried, and now I realise that I’m rambling, and I should probably stop now” Alex bit the inside of her cheek, and tried to figure out the meaning behind Maggie’s wicked grin. Had she said something funny, or stupid? She couldn’t decipher the meaning, and waited with bated breath for Maggie to respond. However, when Maggie spoke, it wasn’t what Alex had expected her to say.

“Alex, you’re the most amazing woman in the world, you know that? Every time I think I’ve gotten you figured out, you do something that makes me fall even deeper for you. I honestly can’t even believe that you’re with me. I mean, someone like you… I just can’t believe what I could have possibly done to deserve you. So, when I need to know that I do have you, that you are mine, that hickey is there to remind me. That’s what it means to me, and I can stop if you want, but that hickey is a reminder of my love for you. That’s what it means to me.” As Maggie finishes up her rant, they both realize what she just said, and Alex looks at her with wet eyes.

“So, you’re saying that you love me? That’s- that’s what I got,”

Maggie’s face lit up with the brightest grin “Of course, you’re not gonna go crazy on me, are you?”

“Probably.” Alex stated. “And, hey, I love you.” 

“Really?” 

“Always.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	2. How Things Change

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maggie's parents ask her to visit them for the first time in over a decade, and when she asks Alex to go with her for support, she doesn't realize that she just made the best decision of her life because Alex loves her and supports her and allows her to deal in her own way because now she has someone willing to fight for her. She's not alone in this world for the first time since she was fourteen.
> 
> tw: upsetting themes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from x-caslen: Hey! Here is my ff request (of course, feel free for not to write it if you don’t like it or whatever), i need Alex yelling to Maggie’s parents and make them know how happy she is with Maggie and what they lost in the moment they kicked her out of the house. Mabye Maggie is listening but Alex doesen’t know (?  
> PD. Sorry for my english
> 
> Oh, honey, you don’t need to apologise for your English, I’m proud of you for making the effort to send in the prompt. Also, this is my first prompt EVER, and I tried to fill it out as best I could. Hope you like it!

Maggie never liked to talk about her parents. Alex had come to learn that family was a touchy subject when it came to Maggie. So, when she came up to Alex one day and told her that her parents had invited her over to talk, and that she wanted Alex to go with her, Alex knew this was important.

“Wow, your parents, huh? Is everything ok? I mean, this is just a little surprising...”

“Honestly? I don’t know, Ally,” Maggie said “I’m not sure what exactly prompted them to call me out of the blue like this, but if I’m going to do this, I want you to be there. Besides,” she said, with a smile creeping onto her face, “We haven’t taken any vacation days yet, and I can think of a few good ways to put them to use.”

Alex couldn’t help but meet Maggie’s smile with one of her own, and rolled her eyes. She could tell that this was important to Maggie, especially because she called her ‘Ally’, which she only ever said when she allowed herself to be vulnerable around Alex. So, she said the only thing that made sense, the only thing that she could say, because the woman she loved was standing in front of her, with all her dimples and wide, questioning brown eyes.

“Of course,”

And with that, the preparation for the trip to Blue Springs started. They each took a few days off from work (to the relief of each of their respective bosses) and decided to take a road trip to the small town in Nebraska.

“That way, we can stop at other places on the way and make it an adventure,” insisted Maggie.

As they finished packing up Maggie’s blue pickup with their bags, Alex made sure to keep an eye on her for any signs of nervousness. So far, it seemed that she was keeping her cool, but Alex made sure to be ready just in case Maggie needed her, regardless.

The trip started off pretty happily, with the girls taking turns driving. They took their time, stopping in several different places throughout the trip. They never slept in the same city twice, and they took any detours they wanted. They drove through the hot deserts of Arizona with the windows down and the music loud. When they were driving through Nevada, they decided to stop in Las Vegas, where they enjoyed a wild night of blackjack and poker, and it seemed that the saying, ‘the house always wins’ didn’t apply to Alex. When they got to Colorado, Maggie insisted that they stop in Denver to see the amazing views of the Rocky Mountains from the city. Alex noticed that Maggie was pretty content through the first half of the trip, but as they neared their destination, she started to get quieter, more reserved, her smiles more forced.

So, Alex made sure that every time Maggie started nervously fidgeting with her hands that she kissed every finger, every curve, so that Maggie could be reminded of how much she was loved and cared for. And whenever Maggie’s smile wavered and failed to reach her eyes, Alex made sure to kiss all around her mouth and her eyes gently, gently, to remind her that no matter what, she would always have a home inside of Alex.

So, by the time they finally got to Maggie’s childhood home, by the time they finally rang the doorbell and were waiting solemnly, Maggie had stopped putting up her defenses. She had stopped trying to force a smile, stopped trying to tell Alex that she was ok, and allowed her to rub the tension out of her shoulders, allowed her to see her be truly vulnerable, because she got the message. She knew that Alex was there for her no matter what happened next, and for that, she was ever grateful, because she needed her to be.

When the door opened, Maggie almost toppled over from the force of her mother practically bear-hugging her. She didn’t know what she was expecting, but it wasn’t this. She hesitated only a second before wrapping her own arms around her mom and allowing herself to feel the warmth of her mother’s embrace for the first time in over a decade.

“Oh, my beautiful child! Look how big you’ve grown!” Maggie’s mom exclaimed, all while looking Maggie up and down, caressing her face, running her hands through her hair, running her hands down Maggie’s arms, as if she couldn’t believe that Maggie was really standing in front of her, as if she could disappear at any moment.

“Hey, mom,” said Maggie, somewhat hesitantly, with a nervous smile on her face, because she had yet to meet her father, who was the real reason she hadn’t been back home since she left at fourteen. He was the one who kicked her out, anyway.

But she didn’t see any sign of him, not even after her mom stopped fussing over her and fell into an awkward silence.

“Um mom…” she said, “Dad does know I’m coming, right?”

Maggie’s mom looked around nervously, and that’s when it hit Alex. Maggie’s _parents_ hadn’t invited her. Her mom had.

“Mom?”

“Well- I didn’t- I - you hadn’t been home for so long, and- and I hadn’t seen your face for years, and I just- I missed you,” Mrs. Sawyer just barely managed to stammer a reply before a pickup almost identical to Maggie’s pulled up on the driveway, and Maggie’s breath stopped.

Alex could see the panic in Maggie’s eyes as the door slowly opened, and a tall, muscular man with a mustache and a paperboy hat stepped out, squinting up through the sunlight at the porch they were standing on.

“If you told me we were having guests, I would’ve brought some-” Alex saw the recognition dawn on Maggie’s father’s face and manifest itself as an expression of surprise, which was just as quickly replaced by anger.

“What the hell is this?” he growled, and Maggie flinched away from him. Alex had never seen her look this defeated. She couldn’t even imagine the emotions of disappointment and regret at getting her hopes up that were going through Maggie’s head.

“I just-” started Mrs. Sawyer.

“You just what?” Mr. Sawyer interjected, “I meant it when I said I wouldn’t tolerate this kind of sinful behaviour in my house. And you,” he turned to Maggie, “How dare you come back here? How could you be so selfish to humiliate your mother, to humiliate me-”

But he didn’t get to finish his sentence, because now, Alex, who had been quietly offering her support to Maggie, finally spoke up.

“Sir. Excuse me, but you couldn’t be more wrong. Your daughter has done everything but humiliate you. She’s not selfish. All she did was decide to be herself. And when the world tried to beat her down, she did everything she could to pick herself back up. At the age of fourteen, she was told that she was a disappointment to the people she loved, and ever since, she’s been doing everything in her power to prove you wrong, so that you could see her for what she is, which is a beautiful, brave, and incredibly powerful woman. She’s the kind of person who gives a voice to the voiceless. She stands up for the rights of others, even when it’s not easy, and she goes above and beyond to make sure that the people around her feel loved, always, because she was never made to feel that way, and she knows how lonely it can get. She’s the woman that I love, and honestly? No offence, sir, you would be stupid to not admit that you love her, too, because she’s just- she’s amazing, sir, and all she’s asking for, all she’s ever asked for is for you to love her for who she is, because her sexuality is only part of her identity. She is so much more than that, and she deserves better.” As Alex stopped talking, she noticed that everyone was staring at her in silent disbelief. Maggie had a bewildered expression on her face, and Mr. Sawyer looked completely taken aback at this girl he’d never met before being so straightforward with him. He probably hadn’t ever met someone who had the courage to stand up to him like that.

There was a long silence before he finally said, “So you care about my daughter, huh?”

Alex snorted and turned to Maggie, who looked overwhelmed and incredibly vulnerable, her eyes wet. She looked absolutely beautiful, and Alex knew that of this she was sure, so she took Maggie’s hands in her own, kissed them gently, and said three words;

“Yes, I do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	3. The Day Supergirl Tried Something New

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Supergirl has gone solar flare again after defeating an army of Cadmus' cyborgs, so when she's alone, she finds herself putting on her suit and ends up at Lena's office at L-Corp, where she finds that Lena is enjoying a joint alone on her balcony. One thing leads to another, and Kara ends up smoking a little bit too, though it affects her way more than it does Lena, and she has a little slip-up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from anon: supercorp fic where lena needs to chill tf out so she smokes a joint on her balcony, supergirl shows up. at first she try's to give the anti-drug talk to lena but gives in and tells her she used to smoke too. kara is a giggly stoned, lena puts a blanket around them and she forgets she isnt there as kara (outing her as sg) all the fluff and angst pleaseeeeee
> 
> Ok, so I’m a huge nerd and figured Kara’s metabolism is too fast for the weed to have any affect on her, so I modified this a bit. Hope you like it just the same :)  
> p.s. bonus points if you can spot the parks and rec reference (come on, I couldn’t let this opportunity pass me by!)

Kara didn’t know why she put on the suit. It’s not like she could exactly use her powers after she solar flared in her attempts to destroy Cadmus’ new army of cyborgs, but she needed to not be Kara Danvers right now. She needed to be a symbol of hope, of strength, not for the sake of the public, but rather for herself. So, she put on the suit, went outside, and just started walking. 

It seemed like she had been wandering the streets for hours when she looked up and noticed where she was. Somehow, she found herself at the foot of the infamous L-corp building, and she couldn’t help but laugh at the irony of the situation. Here she was, standing outside the building that Lena Luthor owned, when her mother was the cause of all of Kara’s problems in the first place. But Kara knew that Lena was nothing like her mother. Unlike Lillian, Lena was trying to make a positive difference in the world, to reverse the impact of her brother’s actions. Lena was the furthest thing from evil. Lena was… well, Kara didn’t really know exactly what Lena was, just that she trusted her, and she was a good friend. Although, lately, she had begun to feel like something...more. 

So, when she looked up and saw that the lights in Lena’s office were on, she walked right on into the mostly empty building and up the elevator. When she got to Lena’s floor, she was surprised to see Lena’s secretary, Jess. She was about to remind Jess that Lena had already told her that she was always welcome to go into her office when she realised that Jess wasn’t seeing Kara Danvers, she was seeing Supergirl, and that realisation made Jess’ bewildered expression make a whole lot more sense.

“Uh- you- you have to wait while I- while I tell Ms. Luthor you’re here. S-sorry. Standard procedure,” Jess just barely managed to stammer out.

“That’s okay, Jess, I understand,” 

“You- you know my name?” asked Jess excitedly.

Realising her mistake, Kara scrambled to come up with an excuse for why she knew the name of a person she had supposedly never met before, but she didn’t have to, because right then, Jess’ phone rang, and she hesitated while reaching for it, but with one look at the understanding smile on Kara’s face, she picked up the phone and answered.

Seeing that she had already made Jess so nervous, Kara figured she should do the polite thing, which was to sit and wait for Jess to get in touch with Lena, although somehow, she knew that Lena wouldn’t have a problem with Supergirl paying her a surprise visit. Besides, it wasn’t like she had anyplace else to be. She was of no use to the DEO without her powers, and while Alex, Winn and J’onn were trying to figure out Cadmus’ next move, she would only be getting in the way. And she didn’t want to go home, where she would be alone with her thoughts, which were currently way too overwhelming for her to deal with, so this was pretty much the only place she felt comfortable being at the moment.

“Um… Ms. Supergirl?” Jess said nervously.

“Oh, you can just call me Supergirl. Ms. Supergirl was my mother,” Kara said with a smile.

Jess laughed, and Kara could see the nerves go out of her with the realisation that Supergirl was, in fact, a total dork, and not just the fierce, celestial being she was made out to be. “Right, well, you can go on ahead up to Ms. Luthor’s office. She isn’t picking up her phone right now, which is weird because she usually always does, but I’m sure she wouldn’t mind me making an exception for Supergirl. ”

Kara got up, gave her an appreciative smile, and walked into Lena’s office. However, when she got in, she realised that Lena was not in her usual spot behind her desk, but was out on the balcony, looking out over the city.

Lena turned around when she heard Supergirl approaching her, and to Kara’s surprise, she was holding something small in her hand, something that looked like a cigarette- no- a joint. She was holding a joint. And from the looks of it, she’d been smoking it for a while now.

“Supergirl! What a surprise! To what do I owe the pleasure?” Lena was looking at Kara with a dazed expression, even as she flashed a cute smile that, for some reason, made Kara’s heart flutter.

“I just- I- is that a joint?” 

“Oh, this? Yeah, I was just looking to blow off some steam. It’s been a long day,” Lena tried to focus on Kara, extending the hand that was holding the joint. “You want a pull?”

“Wha- I- pfft- I don’t- I don’t smoke,” Kara spluttered.

“Oh, come on, are you telling me that Supergirl doesn’t need a little something to help her get through her rough days every now and then?”

Kara couldn’t think clearly. All she could see was the form-fitting red dress Lena was wearing that made her green eyes look somehow even greener than they usually did, and between that and the fact that Lena was somehow even more charming than usual despite being high, Kara’s heart was racing a mile a minute. 

“I ate a brownie once at a party in college. It was intense. It was kind of indescribable, actually. I felt like I was floating. Turns out there wasn't any pot in the brownie. It was just an insanely good brownie.” Kara winced at the absurdity of her story, but Lena just grinned wickedly.

“So… basically, what you’re telling me is that you once ate a brownie… in college,”

At this, Kara felt the heat rising in her face as her cheeks turned a bright red.

“I’m just teasing,” Lena smirked, “so, you never did answer my question. What brings you to L-Corp at 2 in the morning? Something on your mind?”

Kara didn’t know how to answer Lena’s question without revealing the fact that she was essentially powerless because of Lena’s mother, and instead just shook her head.

“It’s nothing.” 

Lena, sensing Kara’s hesitation, leaned forward and offered the joint once again. 

“Here, it’ll take the edge off,” Her expression was solemn and sympathetic, and this time, Kara only hesitated a second before taking the joint and bringing it up to her mouth.

She paused for a moment before slowly, cautiously taking a pull from it, and immediately feeling like her throat was on fire and erupting into a coughing fit. 

“Yeah, that happens the first time or so. It gets easier, though, trust me. And after a few minutes, it’ll all be worth it.”

So, Kara took another pull, and then another, until the smoke didn’t burn the back of her throat, and she felt surreal. Over the course of a few minutes, Kara repeated the process several times until she really started to feel the effects the weed was taking on her.

“Whoa, slow down there, Supergirl, we don’t want everything to hit you all at once, now, do we?” Lena was doing that thing where she widens her eyes, and leans her whole body into Kara, and Kara couldn’t help but stare into her eyes and grab her arm.

“How did they get your eyes so green? I mean, were they always this green? They look as green as grass, and- oh! Grass is another- it’s another word for weed!” Kara wouldn’t stop giggling, and Lena could swear it was the most beautiful sound in the world. Who knew the girl of steel could giggle so much?

“Wow, your office is so big! I’m getting a little dizzy, can we sit down? And it’s a bit chilly today, do you have any blankets?”

So, Lena led Supergirl over to her couch and pulled the blanket that, until now had lain on the couch as decoration, over the both of them. 

“There, is that better, Supergirl?” Lena asked, because, if Supergirl was going to be smoking weed for the first time with Lena Luthor, it was going to be worth doing again. After all she _was_ one of Lena’s only two friends in National City.

“Yes, much. Although whenever, I get cold, my sister Alex likes to cuddle with me and- oops! You weren’t supposed to know that! No you weren’t,” And with that, she dissolved into another giggling fit. 

It took Lena a second to put two and two together, but hadn’t Kara Danvers told her that her sister’s name was Alex? And, come to think of it, Kara _did_ look a lot like Supergirl. Lena tried to keep her cool as she wrapped her arm around Kara and bridged the gap between their bodies under the blanket.

“It’s ok, Kara, your secret’s safe with me.” And she meant it, Kara Danvers had become Lena’s biggest supporter in a world that was constantly trying to put her down, and Supergirl did just the same, so Lena would give up her company before she let any harm come to her friend.

“Hmm, I’m glad I can count on you, Lena,” murmured Kara as she snuggled up closer to Lena. “Wow, you’re really warm and cozy.”

As she was drifting off to sleep with Kara’s head nestled up on her shoulder, she realised the most surprising thing about the fact that Kara was Supergirl and couldn’t help but wonder, “Wait, does that mean I only have one friend in National City?”

But when she looked around at Kara, she saw that she was already fast asleep, and Lena knew that having only one friend in the city wasn’t so bad, because this one friend? She was worth more than any number of acquaintances Lena could ever have.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	4. Maggie's First Game Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maggie is late to her first game night, but when she gets there, she sees her old friend, Clark Kent, and everyone is curious to learn about how they know each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from anon: Sanvers Promt: Alex invites Maggie to game night with the gang but everyone is really surprised when Clark surprises them and turns out to be old friends with Maggie

“Hey, are you ready for tonight, babe?” Alex was watching Maggie cook breakfast over the kitchen counter. She had lost a bet over a game of darts to Maggie the night before and was now awaiting her penalty of vegan chocolate chip pancakes upon Maggie’s insistence.

 “Tonight?” Maggie tilted her head, the realization slowly dawning on her face, “Oh, crap. I forgot- game night. I’m so sorry, Alex, I told Detective Thorne I could cover his shift tonight- He was his taking husband and their kid to Disney World this weekend. I should’ve checked first. I can still make it, but I might be a little late. Is that okay?”

 “Yeah, yeah, that’s fine. Just… be prepared.” Alex narrowed her eyes, “It can get pretty intense. You wouldn’t believe how competitive Kara and Winn get over Uno. And we’ve had games of spoons that ended with the kitchen table halfway across the room, upside down.”

 “Well then,” Maggie said, expertly flipping her last pancake over, “I’ll make sure to bring my A game. But right now, it’s time for you,” she slid Alex’s plate in front of her with a triumphant smirk, “to finally have a taste of my world famous pancakes.”

 “Or,” Alex leaned forward so that she was inches away from Maggie’s face, “we could just skip breakfast and get back into bed and I could pay you back in some other way.”

 Maggie’s breath hitched, and it took everything she had to strengthen her resolve and reply, “Nice try, Danvers. Eat up, we don’t wanna be late for work.”

 So, Alex skeptically poked at her pancakes before cutting a small piece and taking a bite.

 “How is it?” asked Maggie

 “Eh, not the _best_ pancake I’ve ever tasted,” replied Alex, but from the way she eagerly went in for a second bite, Maggie could tell that she liked them, and she couldn’t help but laugh at her girlfriend’s stubbornness.

 “Alright, just eat your pancakes, Danvers.”

 

* * *

 

That night, when Alex got to Kara’s apartment, she was surprised to see that Clark Kent was there.

 “Alex!” Her younger sister rushed to his side, “Look who decided to join us!”

 “Hey, Alex. Nice to see you again,” Clark was smiling sheepishly, and Alex marvelled at how similar he looked to his cousin.

 “Clark. What a nice surprise!” She greeted Clark and James with a hug, and ruffled Winn’s hair. “Maggie’s gonna be a little late. She’s pulling an extra shift at work today, but we can get started without her.”

 And they did. They played some new hilariously inappropriate game Winn brought along with him called Cards Against Humanity, in which Kara didn’t quite seem to understand all of the cards played, and they gave up trying to explain them to her by the end of the fifth round. They played Mario Kart on the old GameCube Console that Jeremiah had gifted to the girls to help them get along better when Kara first landed on Earth, in which Winn and Kara kept shoving each other to try and knock each other off course, and despite all their efforts, James always seemed to come out on top in the end.

 “Okay, you have _got_ to be cheating,” Winn claimed around the third time that James won.

 “You insult me,” James smiled, “I spent the better half of my childhood indoors playing this game. I’d be more surprised if I _didn’t_ win every time. Face it, Schott, you just can’t beat me”

They were several rounds into playing Uno when there was a knock at the door, and Alex rushed to answer it.

 “Special delivery of pizza, potstickers, and root beer?” Maggie asked when the door opened, holding up several boxes with takeout bags and cases of bottles stacked on top.

 “Maggie! You’re my hero!” Kara practically jumped on top of Maggie in her pursuit of her beloved potstickers.

 As Maggie walked in to the apartment and saw Clark, her eyebrows shot up, and her eyes widened in surprise.

 “Clark! What are you doing here?” She walked over to him and gave him a hug as if they had been friends for years.

 “I was about to ask you the same thing. I’m actually a cousin of Kara’s,” Clark replied. “And Alex’s,” He added after a beat.

 Alex could practically see the wheels turning in Maggie’s head as she figured it out.

 “Wait…” She narrowed her eyes, a habit that she had picked up from Alex, as she came to a realization. “Are you telling me that Clark Kent is Superman?”

 “Wha- I- she knows?”

 He turned to Kara, who put her hands up, “Don’t look at me, she figured it out herself,”

 “You guys aren’t exactly experts at hiding it. I mean, really? Just glasses? I’m amazed at how many people that disguise has worked on.” Maggie laughed and added, “And, come on, Clarke, you had to tell me eventually. You can only fly around the world so many times before I notice your ever-present, perfectly wind-swept hair.” At this, Clark couldn’t help but chuckle and roll his eyes.

 “Wait, you guys still haven’t told us how you know each other,” said Kara, curious as to the origin of this unlikely friendship.

 “Well, we met in college. Clark was on the Student Council, and I was the representative for our queer-straight alliance. I was kind of a joke to everyone else on the council, but Clark was a real ally. He spent a lot of time hanging with me and the other queer kids in the club to understand our individual stories and experiences, and we became fast friends.”

 “Wow, Clark, I didn’t know that you were so interested in LGBT rights!” Exclaimed Kara.

 “Well, I’m a strong believer in the equal treatment of everyone, despite their differences. Besides, I know a thing or two about not feeling like you belong. I mean, I _am_ a literal alien.”

 Just then, they heard a shout from Winn on the couch. “How are you doing that? There is no way you can win every time without cheating,”

 James was laughing wickedly, “Come on, give it up, Schott, you can’t win.”

 Winn responded with a firm “Never! Let’s go again.”

 “Hey, make room for the _real_ champion, you guys! Maggie held the record time for rainbow road back in college!” Shouted Clark across the room.

So, they all settled back on the couch and went back to playing their games.

 And, as Clark looked around and saw just how happy his cousin and her friends were; laughing, and smiling, and stuffing their faces with food, Kara threatening anyone who even dared look at her potstickers, he realized that he hadn’t needed to come to National City to check on his cousin and make sure she wasn’t missing Krypton and her family too much. It seemed that she had made her own family here. A loud, crazy, competitive, loving family. Krypton may have been her birthplace, but Kara had found something so much more precious on Earth, in these people; a home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	5. Maybe's and Someday's

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Since Alex met Maggie, she has began dreaming of her future with her, and she sees their future in the way Maggie deals with witnesses at a crime scene, or the way she cares for her friend Adrian.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from bacop150: Alex sees Maggie interacting with a child witness whom she rescued. Alex momentarily allows herself to daydream about "what if one day?"
> 
> Important: The character of Adrian is not one of my own creation, but rather one of queergirlwriting's. He's a really awesome and brave kid who also happens to be transgender, and he's in a bunch of her/their fics. 
> 
> You can check queergirlwriting's work out here (if you haven't already, in which case, you should really get on it, because she's/they're awesome): http://archiveofourown.org/users/queergirlwriting/pseuds/queergirlwriting

Alex had never allowed herself to dream about a future before. Or, at least, not outside of her work. Her whole life had always been about being perfect. She had to have perfect grades, a perfect job, had to be the perfect older sister, the perfect daughter. She had never had time to think about herself, or rather, what she wanted for herself. That is, until she met Maggie. Now, she dreamed of her future constantly. Now, she looked forward to it, and she accepted any variations in her life plans, because now, she didn’t have to live in her small bubble of perfection anymore. She welcomed change, and she expected the unexpected, and she stopped beating herself up for being anything less than perfect, because Maggie had showed her a new way of viewing the world, where imperfections were inevitable, but also important, something that added character.

So, when she goes to help Maggie on a case with suspected alien involvement and sees Maggie comforting a terrified young girl who had almost been kidnapped, whose parents were on their way to pick her up, when she sees the way the girl won’t talk to anyone but Maggie, how Maggie treats her with the same respect that she does with older, more mature witnesses while the other detectives dismiss the girl as a confused child, she lets her mind wander.

She imagines growing older with Maggie. She imagines moving in with her, and she wonders what it would be like to wake up next to her every day. She thinks about how she would propose to Maggie, or maybe Maggie would propose to her, and she doesn’t know which would make her happier, because either way, she would be marrying the love of her life. She pictures their wedding day, herself in a dress, and maybe Maggie in a suit, because she knew that Maggie preferred them to the impracticality of dresses.

Before Maggie, the thought of getting married would have seemed ridiculous to Alex, but to her surprise, now that it was a possibility, marriage didn’t seem like such a foreign concept to her anymore. In fact, it was a welcome image.

“Right, Agent Danvers?” Maggie’s question snapped Alex out of her daze.

“Hmm?”

“Well, I was just telling Sarah here that we were going to take good care of her until her parents get here,” Maggie was crouching on the ground so she could be level with the young girl and squinting up through the sunlight at Alex expectantly.

“Oh, yeah, absolutely,” Alex confirmed, and Maggie turned her attention back to Sarah.

“And, you know what, don’t tell anyone, but we’re kind of the cool kids around here, so you know you’re hanging with the best of the best.” At this, Sarah cracked a shy smile that was missing two front teeth, and gave a little giggle.

And, then, Alex had a wild thought. One that hadn’t even ever crossed her mind, one that she never dared to even so much as consider, because she had never had the right circumstances for it to be possible. She thought about what it would be like to have children with Maggie. If it were ever to happen, they would probably adopt rather than conceive a child of their own, because they both knew how problematic the foster care system in America was, and they would love the child as if it were their own, because it would be. She imagined Maggie getting up to constant mischief with their child, because lets face it, she was the more juvenile of the two. She imagined waking up early in the morning, sunlight streaming through the windows, with their child resting peacefully next to them, and the warm, sweet security of the thing Alex had found in Maggie; home. Alex couldn’t help but smile at the thought, and when she turned to look at Maggie once more, she noticed that Maggie was staring back up at her with a puzzled expression.

“Everything alright there, Danvers? You don’t seem to be all here. Something on your mind?”

“No, I’m good.” Alex quickly replied, because this wasn’t the right time or place to tell Maggie what she had been thinking about.

So, they went back to work, and Alex put the thought out of her mind for now, because, there would be a time for all these maybe’s and someday’s that were running through her head.

When they finally got home from a long day at work, the only thing on Alex’s mind was a decent meal and some rest, but as she warmed up some food, she noticed Maggie calling Adrian, the teenage boy that she might as well have adopted, who she had supported through all his struggles as a member of the trans community, and even just with navigating high school as a teenage boy, to ask about how his date with a new girl went, because no matter how tired she may be, he was always a priority to her. Maggie always made time for Adrian. He was practically family, anyway.

And, at the sight of Maggie checking in on Adrian, even as her eyes were heavy with sleep, and she was struggling to stay awake, Alex couldn’t help but imagine bringing up a child who had a mother who cared for them this much, with whom they would never be afraid to be themselves, because they knew that they were cared for no matter what, without any terms or limitations, which had, unfortunately, not been the case for either Adrian or Maggie, both of whose parents had rejected them when they found out that they were queer. Alex knew that Maggie would make sure that their child would never have to face that kind of rejection, they would never have to explain themselves to their mothers, who would be love them regardless of their identity.

So, when Maggie finished up with her call and looked up at Alex and asked, “What’s going on, babe? You’ve been lost in your thoughts all day. Are you sure everything’s okay?”

Alex responded, “Nothing, it’s just… I love you.”

And she meant it, because out of all the things Alex imagined in her future with Maggie, of all the things she envisioned having, there was always one underlying theme, the one thing they already had that made everything else possible; unlimited and unwavering love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	6. The Visit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maggie is framed for a crime she didn't commit, and Alex, along with the rest of their friends, visits Maggie in jail.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from Anon: Maggie goes to jail and everyone tries to visit her?

Maggie didn’t know what she was thinking, rushing into Cadmus’ new lair in pursuit of Lillian Luthor. She knew there was something suspicious about the fact that it was empty, and she should’ve called backup, but instead, she followed Lillian into the gigantic hideout. Maybe if she could’ve just somehow kept up with Lillian, she wouldn’t be in this situation, but no. She got lost in the maze of doorways and ended up in the control room just as a chemical bomb was launched wirelessly, somehow, just as the rest of the police force reached the room, and she had fallen into Lillian’s trap. It didn’t help that, through all of the chaos, Lillian had escaped once again, and Maggie stood there, absolutely stunned, and framed for a crime she didn’t commit.

Thankfully, Supergirl managed to stop the bomb in time, but even with all the debate Alex put up, all the assurance Supergirl gave to the police that Maggie wasn’t culpable, the evidence was overwhelmingly against her favour. Lillian had executed her plan to perfection, and Maggie was whisked away to jail.

Maggie was alone, and yet, she knew she was not. She knew that Alex and their friends would always have her back, no matter what.  And, just as she expected, they came to visit her. She watched them come in the door, looking as serious as she had ever seen them. Alex led the pack with a somber expression. She saw the change in Alex’s face when she finally spotted Maggie. Alex looked so relieved to see her that Maggie almost believed that everything was ok and that this was just a minor inconvenience in their plans to defeat Cadmus.

When they finally reached the cell, a small five by five room with a bed to sit on and not much else, Alex reached for her and hugged her firmly, but Maggie could tell she was holding back for her sake. Before letting go, they pressed their foreheads together so that they could feel each other’s warmth, so that they could take comfort in the fact that they were both alive and well and safe, because no matter what happened, as long as they were safe, they would always find a way to make everything okay.

Next, Maggie turned to Kara, who squeezed her hand reassuringly, with a small smile, and words of comfort, of support.

James gave her a hug, and reminded her that she was going to be okay, they were going to figure this out, like they always did.

Winn, always the comedian of the group, said something about how he always imagined that Maggie would be the one visiting Alex in Jail, but Maggie didn’t properly hear him, because before he could finish, he got a well placed smack to the head from Alex. In this, Maggie found comfort, because even when it feels like the world is ending, some things just never change.

J’onn put a hand on Maggie’s shoulder and reminded her that he had the entire force of the DEO working tirelessly to prove her innocence and capture Lillian. Maggie found comfort in this, too, because J’onn had become something of a father figure to her in the few short months since she had known him.

But, as much as she needed their comfort and support right now, they had work to do, so as soon as she had greeted everyone, she got down to business.

“So, guys, what’s the plan?” she looked around at her friends expectantly. “We can’t just sit around and wait for Lillian to make the next move.”

“Maybe we can,” said Kara, and seeing the curious expressions of her friends, she added, “Cadmus has been at least two steps ahead of us every time we got close to thwarting their plans. They’ve been two steps ahead of us right from the start, and we’ve just been playing into their hands over and over.”

“This time, they’ve gone too far. First they take my dad, then my girlfriend. They’re not taking anything else from me.” Alex stated, shaking with rage.

“Hey, everything’s gonna be all right, we’re gonna get through this. I’m going to get out of here, and we’re going to find your father,” Maggie was the one reassuring Alex, now.

“So, what do we do?” asked Winn, and if Maggie didn’t know better, she would think he looked almost defeated, like he didn’t know if there was anything _to_ do.

“ _So_ ,” Replied Kara, her eyes distant, lost in thought. “Maybe we should stop trying to get ahead, and instead, let them think they have the upper hand, get them while their guard’s down.”

“Are you saying you _want_ them to have their way?” J’onn inquired.

“I’m saying, we make them truly believe that they’re having their way, allow them to capture us, and infiltrate them from the inside,”

“That’s dangerous, Kara. You could get hurt in the process. We don’t know Cadmus’ plan, but we know it isn’t good,” Alex stated, and Maggie could see her tense up at the thought of her sister putting herself in harm’s way.

“Yeah, but it _could_ work,” noted James.

“Ok, then, if we’re going to do this, we have to be prepared. We can’t rush into things. We’re gonna have to play the long game, wait for exactly the right time to strike, when Cadmus is most vulnerable.” explained Maggie, “Otherwise, we’re going to make the same mistakes again, and it’ll all have been for nothing.

“Ok,” said Kara, with a newly determined set to her shoulders, “I think I can do that.”

“But, first, we have to get Maggie out of here,” stated Alex, still hesitant about the idea of having her sister’s life be risked in pursuit of Cadmus.

“Agreed,” said J’onn, “And, we will. It’s not a question of if, but when. Maggie, I promise you, we will get you out of here as soon as we can. Trust me on that”

And, Maggie did trust him, which was huge for her, because trust did not come easy with her. Before Alex, she only had herself to trust, but in the few months since they met, Maggie had found herself beginning to open up her heart again, and allowing herself to be vulnerable with people.

She had been in trouble with the law before, but never anything like this, and yet, she was not at all scared about what would happen to her, and not only because she trusted J’onn to get her out of jail, free of all her charges, but because, no matter what happened to her, she knew that Alex was safe, that Kara was safe, and James, and Winn, and even J’onn. And, for the first time in over a decade, she was not going through life alone. For the first time in over a decade, she knew that the people she cared about, cared about her, too, and no matter what, she knew that she would always have this… family. For the first time in over a decade, Maggie felt like she was finally home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	7. New Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara is on the elevator on her way up to telling Lena how she feels about her, and she is thinking about all the revelations and obstacles that she had to go through that brought her to this very moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was just an original idea, because we've all been at that place where we struggle with our sexuality, and with accepting ourselves, and I just wanted to document that thought process, and I thought it would be interesting to see that in a character like Kara, who is so visibly brave and so loved, so that we may be able to realize that there is nothing wrong with just being ourselves. Most of the time, we have to first get over our own internalization and fears before we can even begin to come out to the outside world. And this message isn't only for the bisexual people out there. I mean, even I'm not bi, but this is for all lgbtqia people of all ages, all races, and religions. This is for all the people who have been scared to truly be themselves. Stay safe, and know that no matter what, you are important, you are appreciated, and you matter.

Kara had never felt like this before. She had never been so scared and yet, so excited at the same time, and she couldn’t help but wonder if this is what Alex had felt like when she met Maggie.

 She was walking into the elevator of the L-Corp building on her way up to meet Lena. She had been contemplating doing this for a long time, and she was finally ready. She was finally going to just tell Lena how she felt about her.

 And, why shouldn’t she? She had never thought of herself as bisexual, but lately, especially with Alex’s coming out, Kara had started to see things differently. Now, she realized that sexuality didn’t have to be something that a person had to have figured out from the start. After all, Alex was 28 and just coming out. Maybe Kara had been denying a part of herself this whole time, too. And, the way Lena always made her feel… well, there was no word for it.

 Every time Kara looked at Lena, her heart started beating faster than she would have ever though it could. Every time they touched, no matter how lightly, even if their hands just brushed past each other, the hairs on Kara’s arms stood up with goosebumps. And, every time Lena smiled, Kara’s heart fluttered and she could feel butterflies in her stomach.

 Before now, she had always denied it. She had always been so scared of being different. Growing up as an alien, she had constantly been trying to fit in. Even just the idea of standing out had always been terrifying. She had always kept her head down, stayed out of trouble, made sure that she never gave anyone any reason to believe that she was different.

 So, she went to college, got a job at Catco, kept her powers hidden. Until one day, she hadn’t. In the blink of an eye, everything had changed. Alex had been in trouble, and Kara, in trying to save her, had revealed herself as Supergirl. And, she couldn’t deny, it was the best decision she ever made. For the first time in her life, she didn’t have to hide anymore. She could finally follow her instinct to help people, to stop standing by and actually making a difference. For the first time in her life, she didn’t have to hide, and that was the most amazing feeling in the world. That was, until she met Lena.

 Now that she thought about it, this wasn’t the first time she had felt like this. Looking back, she realized how her fascination of Cat Grant was far from platonic, and so was her attraction to Lucy Lane.

 But, she wasn’t always as accepting of herself. At first, she didn’t even understand what the word bisexual meant. She was confused about how she could be attracted to men and women at the same time. It took a long conversation with Maggie, and then Alex to fully understand herself.

 Actually, Maggie and Alex were the reason that Kara had even begun to seriously consider her feelings for Lena. It wasn’t until she saw how happy they were that she realized that a relationship could be that healthy and loving. It wasn’t until she heard the way Alex talked about Maggie that she realized that the way she felt about Lena wasn’t the way others felt about people that were “just friends”.

 Initially, after her talk with Maggie and Alex, she figured she could ignore her feelings for Lena. After all, she had been doing fine with being single until then. She was an independent girl who didn’t need to be in a relationship to know her self worth. But every time she looked into Lena’s eyes, she could tell she didn’t have a chance. She couldn’t keep her feelings buried forever. She was absolutely smitten, and from the way Lena looked at her, Kara could tell that she liked her, too. Besides, Kara knew that she was just using independence as an excuse for not coming out. She knew that you could be in a relationship and still be independent. Still, the idea of being different was daunting. But she was nothing if not a person who faced her fears. Kara, of all people knew that it was okay to be afraid, as long as you didn’t let your fears take over. Even the smallest acts of defiance could help change everything. And, so, one by one, Kara broke down every obstacle her fear threw at her.

 The first and hardest obstacle was coming out to herself. She was terrified of accepting it, because it would change the way she looked at her entire world, but she did it, and she got through it. Next, she came out to Maggie and Alex, which she was dreading, because she didn’t want to once again take the spotlight away from Alex after she had just come out, because Kara knew that her needs had always overshadowed Alex’s. But, to her surprise, it went really well, because Alex knew what it was like to hide that part of herself from the world, and somehow, both Alex and Maggie had already had an idea that Kara liked Lena. In fact, they were betting on it. That made everything easier, as she was met with open minds and open hearts. And, with that, Kara was prepared to meet her final obstacle head on.

 So, there she stood, in the elevator, albeit rather terrified. It took a long time for her to get to the mindset she was in now, and she was proud of the progress she had made. However, she couldn’t help but be apprehensive of Lena’s reaction, and what was to come of it, but she didn’t regret getting on the elevator. She had already made up her mind, and when Kara Danvers made up her mind, there was no changing it. There was no going back now.

 Kara watched the floor numbers go up with bated breath. She counted them off in her head. One, two, three, and so on until the elevator stopped at Lena’s floor. There was a split second of absolute silence and peace, and then, the doors slid open. Kara steeled herself, and just breathed, ready as ever, to face her biggest fear. And, then, just like that, she walked out, onwards to new beginnings, because she knew that no matter what happened out there, it was always better to be true to herself than to hide in the shadows of her insecurity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	8. Always

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara needs to get comfort from Alex and Maggie after she finally breaks up with Mon-El.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After tonight's episode, I couldn't imagine Kara being left alone in her apartment to cry, so I wrote a little something that made me feel so much more comfortable about how Kara's night went.

She couldn’t believe it. She couldn’t believe that after putting up with so much and holding back so many of her frustrations, things still hadn’t worked out. She couldn’t believe that after she had yet again put so much time and so much effort into a relationship, it had ended badly, which was exactly what she had been trying to avoid. And, despite everything, she was surprised to find that she wasn’t angry, she wasn’t resentful, she was just so exhausted.

 She was exhausted of going her whole life feeling so alone. She was exhausted of yet again putting so much of herself into a relationship only to have it be just another disappointment where her partner didn’t understand her needs. Or, rather, need. She really only had one. All she asked for was for Mon-El to be honest with her. All she had wanted was to be able to trust him the way that she thought he trusted her. And, even though everyone kept telling her that he was bad news, she kept faith in him and gave him chances to redeem himself, time and time again. And, he had let her down, time and time again.

 Now, she realized that she had been wasting her time trying to make him change. It just simply wasn’t her responsibility. The only reason she was even trying to date Mon-El was because she thought he understood her. She thought he could relate to the pain that she had gone through, and she found some level of comfort in that. She found a sense of purpose in helping him go through the healing process, in going through it with him. She though they could support each other, like no one else could.

 Clark was just a baby when Krypton exploded, and Mon-El was the only other person on the planet who could truly understand her loss. Until he wasn’t. It had taken him lying to her yet again for her to realize that they were just two different people who didn’t work. She was done with denying her true feelings and pretending like she didn’t mind, just so that she could _maybe_ have a chance at a romantic relationship. She had only been doing it to protect herself from getting hurt, but it seemed to always do her more harm than good in the end. It only served to allow her relationship to get more and more toxic over time.

 And, there she was, leaning against the door, crying, her mind racing. If she was going to be left alone with her thoughts any longer, she thought she might explode. So, she sent out one text that she hoped would help make it all better. Just three words; “need you guys”.

 Alex and Maggie were there in under 20 minutes, and when Kara spluttered and failed to explain what was wrong, Alex walked her over to the sofa and wrapped her in her arms, because she knew what Kara needed. She knew that her sister never got like this unless she was really hurting, unless she truly allowed herself to feel the pain that she had been denying for so long. So, she held her sister’s body through all the sobs, all the tears, while Maggie stood by them with her hand on Alex’s back, because she could see that Alex’s heart was breaking at seeing her sister like this, and they stayed that way, Alex soothing Kara with love in her voice, Maggie silently supporting them through all of it, until Kara’s sobbing subsided, her body slowly melting into Alex’s, because the more ready she became to talk, the more scared she got to finally verbalize the truth that she had been denying for so long.

 Slowly, Kara lifted her head, allowing Alex to wipe the tears out of her eyes.

 “You want to talk?” Alex asked softly, because she knew that Kara would speak when she was ready.

 And, it seemed like she was, because she nodded her head.

 After a long pause, she finally looked around to Alex, and then Maggie, inviting her to the conversation as well, and said, “I- I broke up with Mon-El.”

 “Oh, honey,” sighed Maggie, because she’d been through her fair share of breakups, and she could relate to what Kara was going through.

 “But, it’s more than that…” Alex stated, with a hint of a question in her voice.

 “Yeah, it is,” Kara took a deep breath and continued, “Honestly, I’m not even that upset about the _breakup_. I mean, not really. Mon-El’s a nice guy, I guess, it’s just- and, I think you understand, but we were never really gonna work out to begin with. We’re too different, but… being with him, I found a way to deny it. With him, I could find a sense of normalcy, you know? I mean, sometimes it’s easy to forget, but I’m an _alien_ , and so is he, and we both lost our entire worlds at a young age, and I just thought… I guess I just thought I could figure myself out, you know? I thought we could figure ourselves out together. I mean, for the first time in my life, I found someone that I could relate to, and I was willing to overlook all of his flaws in order to have someone be there with me who I didn’t have to pretend with. I mean, being Supergirl means I don’t get to be upset, I don’t get to grieve, because I have bigger priorities, I have people to protect. And, I thought if I found someone like me that felt the same way, we could help each other through it. But all I ended up doing was hurting myself even more in the process, and that’s the worst part. Not that we broke up, but that I wasted my energy trying to fix something that was irreparable to begin with. And, now I can’t help but think that maybe _I’m_ broken.”

 “Oh, Kara,” said Alex, “You’re far from broken. You are so strong, and I’m so sorry that you’ve had to carry this burden all alone this whole time. And, yeah, maybe your relationship with Mon-El _was_ a way for you to hide from your feelings. But Kara? That does not make you broken. That does not mean that you are not brave, or that you don’t deserve to be happy. You are so capable and so, so loved, and I believe in you. I always have. You have allowed yourself to conceal your pain for so long that even the people closest to you, including me, forgot that it was there, but trust me on one thing; Supergirl or not, you are my sister, and you can tell me all your sorrows, I won’t ever turn my back on you. I will never run. No matter what happens, you can count on me being there, you understand that?”

 Kara sniffled and nodded her head, and the tension seemed to go out of her shoulders as she leaned into her sister once more.

 “Thank you. Really, thank you so much for being here.” She looked up at Maggie, took her hand, and squeezed it slightly, “I know I don’t always tell you this, but I really appreciate you being here for me.”

 Maggie gave a small smile and squeezed Kara’s hand back gently.

 “Of course, little Danvers, I’m always here for you.”

 With her mind finally calming down, Kara began to feel the effects of the day on her body as she gave a little yawn.

 “Stay with me?” She asked her sister and her sister’s girlfriend.

 “Of course,” Alex responded as Maggie slipped onto the couch next to Kara as she moved over to make space for her.

 Alex held Kara through the night, because no matter how old she got, she would always be Alex’s little sister, and Alex would make sure that Kara knew that there was one thing she could always rely on; Alex would always be there for her. Always.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	9. Chicken Soup for Lena's Soul

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara has a lot of work, and when she calls Lena to cancel their lunch date, she finds out Lena's sick and trying to work through it, so Kara rushes over to L-Corp to help her feel better and convince her to go home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I literally fell asleep while writing this, and am posting this from school, so if there are any mistakes or things you think I need to change, I'd appreciate it if you let me know. Also, I'm sick right now, (which this fic is based on in the first place) so just bear with me. Anyway, I hope you like it!

It was a busy day at Catco Magazine. Kara had been running errands all day, she still had an article on the drop in crime rate since Supergirl had revealed herself to finish, and she was absolutely exhausted. But throughout the day, one thing- or, rather, one person, remained a constant on her mind, as she usually did; Lena Luthor. Kara and Lena had had a lunch date scheduled for the afternoon, but with all the work that Kara had to do, she was forced to cancel.

 She hated cancelling on Lena, because she knew that Lena’s time was precious. She knew that Lena always had to plan every day down to the minute, and despite the fact that Lena never seemed angry, or even annoyed, when Kara cancelled, Kara still disliked having to reschedule, because their little outings together were always the best parts of her day.

 She always liked hanging out with Lena, talking to her, because Lena always understood her. She always encouraged her, and she liked Kara for Kara, or, rather, who she was, not Supergirl, which was what she could do. Even though Lena didn’t know they were the same person, sometimes Kara just needed a reminder that she mattered. She always respected Kara, even though she was practically a billionaire, and Kara was just an average reporter. Also, there was something about Lena that made her intriguing, something that made Kara want to get to know her better.

 So, she was dreading having to call Lena and give her the unfortunate news, but it had to be done. She knew that she always had to prioritize work over pleasure.

 And, with that knowledge, she picked up her phone and dialed Lena’s work number, even though she had the personal number that Lena only gave out to the people closest to her, because she didn’t want to disrupt Lena in the middle of any important work or meetings, and she reluctantly waited for the call to connect.

 The phone only rang twice before Jess, Lena’s secretary picked up, and Kara heard a polite, professional voice on the other end of the line.

 “L-Corp. This is Jess, how may I help you?”

 “Hi, Jess! It’s Kara. Can I please talk to Lena, if she’s not busy?”

 “Oh, Ms. Danvers! I was just about to call you! Ms. Luthor is set on going on your lunch date, even though she has a terrible cold, and a huge load of work that she’s _insisting_ on powering through, despite the fact that all she should be doing right now is resting. I was hoping you could talk her out of it. She always seems to take your advice into serious consideration.”

 Kara didn’t even need to think about it. She knew that Lena wouldn’t stop working unless she was physically pulled away from her work, and even then, she would put up a fight. Lena Luthor was a busy woman, and she got work done, regardless of her physical condition.

 Kara quickly responded, “You know what, I’ll do you one better. I’m on my way over now,” with that, she rushed to put away her crucial work and decided she was fine with pulling an all nighter later if she needed to, because what kind of friend would Kara be if she didn’t do everything in her power to help Lena get through her rough days?

 So, she rushed over to Snapper’s office, practically shouted, “Emergency doctor’s appointment!” which was the best excuse she could come up at a rushed time like this, and she headed out the door.

 Twenty minutes later, Kara was in the elevator of the L-Corp building, hot chicken noodle soup in hand from her favourite takeout place in town, and a determined expression on her face, because she did not expect pulling Lena Luthor away from work in the name of relaxation to be easy.

 When she walked into Lena’s office, she noticed the blinds were pulled halfway down the windows, and just enough light was streaming through for a person with normal vision to see. There were several bottles of cough syrup on Lena’s desk, and a basket full of tissues under it. Lena herself was sitting behind the desk, a blanket draped over her shoulders, her head bent over a stack of papers, a frown on her face, and her pen moving across the paper quickly. She didn’t even notice Kara coming in, and only looked up, startled, as Kara set the soup down in front of her.

 Kara saw her expression change from work mode to one of joy at seeing her friend.

 “Kara! What a surprise! I was just wrapping up. Wait, is it 12 already? I thought we still had an hour,” and, then seeing the clock, she added, “Oh, wow time really _does_ fly. Just give me a second, Kara, I’ll just put this stuff away, and we can go.”

 “Oh, no. _We_ are not going _anywhere_. I’m here to pull you away from work.” Kara said, trying to sound as important as she could, but she couldn’t help but smile at how cute Lena looked with a fuzzy grey blanket around her.

 “Pull me away from work…?” Realisation slowly dawned on her face as she said, “Jess! She’s been trying to get me to go home and rest all day. I expect she called you?”

 “Well…” said Kara, not wanting to get Jess into any kind of trouble, “She may have said a thing or two about you being sick.”

 “I can imagine. I can’t blame her, though. She really is an amazing secretary. It’s hard to get mad when she cares so much about me, even when I blatantly refuse her suggestions for me to go and relax.” Lena praised, looking out the glass of her door at Jess with a hint of pride, and turning back to Kara, she said, “So, what have you got in your little bag of tricks that will make me go home?”

 Kara suddenly felt her face grow hot from Lena’s playful gaze, and tried to talk through it by explaining, “Well, what I have for you here today is a delicious takeout chicken noodle soup. As well, I have about an hour’s worth of lectures about how rest is the best step to recovery. And, then, in case those two don’t work, I’ve been told I have an extremely convincing pout.”

 “Well, it sounds like you came prepared,” Lena said, getting up, and moving over to the sofa and inviting Kara to follow her, “Although it probably won’t be necessary. I feel much better already. I’m sure I can get through a few more hours of work.” But, even as she said it, Lena sniffled, and grabbed a tissue to blow her nose into.

 “Ah, yes, I can see you’re practically healthy already,” Kara teased, opening the two containers of soup and setting them down on the table. “How about we just start with the soup, and I can do the rest of the convincing after?”

 “Sounds like a plan.” Lena said, digging into her soup gratefully.

 So, they drank their soup and discussed their busy days, and Kara could feel the tension from work going out of her as time passed, and she added it to the list of things she loved about hanging out with Lena.

 They talked for hours, and by the time Kara had to leave, she had convinced Lena to go home and allow herself to recover so that she could continue her work the next day.

 Kara, however, had to rush back to work to complete all her assignments, after which she passed out on the couch the minute she got home.

* * *

 

 The next day, Kara walked into work to find a whole bouquet of Lena’s prized rare Plumeria’s on her desk with a little note attached that said, “Thank you. You are a life saver!”

The resulting smile stayed on Kara’s face all day, even throughout all of Snapper’s furious yelling and arm-waving and all his “I need this done yesterday”’s, and when she got home from work, she was surprised to hear a knock at the door to find Lena standing behind it.

 “Lena, hi! How are you?” she couldn’t help but notice that Lena looked much healthier, and beamed with a sense of pride in herself, for helping Lena get better, but also in Lena, for pulling herself away from work to take care of herself.

 “Actually, I’m feeling much better, because of you,” Lena acknowledged, “I just wanted to thank you. Your soup really worked wonders. I feel so much better. And your company wasn’t too bad, either.” Lena said with a smile.

 “Well, that’s what friends are for, right?” Again, Kara felt a blush creeping up her face, and her heart fluttered at the way Lena looked at her.

 And, then, Lena did the simplest thing. She leaned over and kissed her, and Kara kissed her back. It was so soft and special, and Kara could swear it felt like the first time, it was so amazing. She had never felt anything like this before.

 It wasn’t like she hadn’t ever kissed anyone, just… this felt different. She could feel everything, Lena’s soft lips on hers, her one hand caressing her face, and the other running down her arm, leaving goosebumps in its wake. It was electric, and she never even realized anything could feel this good, this safe, this…breathtaking, until now. Time stopped, and for the first time, Kara understood why the camera always circled around the couple in movies, because for the first time, everything else was blocked out, and in that moment, Kara’s entire world was focused on Lena, on this kiss, and all her other worries just melted away. It felt like Kara’s everything revolved around this moment, and she couldn’t comprehend how something could be this simple and yet, this perfect at the same time.

 “Well,” Kara sighed when they finally came up for air, “I should definitely visit you when you get sick more often.”

 And, Lena just laughed, because for the first time in her life, she had something that was real. This…friendship, if she could even still call it that, was changing her for the better, and for the first time in her life, she could just be herself. So, she just laughed, and Kara laughed with her, because the joy of this moment felt unreal, and it was all they could do to appreciate it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	10. Say Na Na Na

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maggie has never liked singing in front of others, but things start to change after she meets Alex, whose kid sister likes to spontaneously burst into song.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I honestly don't even know where I got the idea for this but I hope I turned out fine. My mind is weird that way, but I guess this is a sign that you should probably send some prompts my way. Anyway, Hope you like it!

Ever since she was a young child, Maggie had always loved to sing. At first, it was just a little bit of whatever she heard. Then, when she started going to school, she would sing nursery rhymes that she learned on repeat until her father yelled at her to shut up. As she got older, she started to learn more about what style of music she was into. But, also as she got older, her father became increasingly hostile towards her, and by the time she was in the first grade, she had already learned to keep her singing to herself. She had long since learned not to express herself. By the time she was in the first grade, her father had already taught her that her voice didn’t matter.

 When she was fourteen and got kicked out of her house, one of the only things that kept her spirit alive was music. She went through her whole life learning not to get too attached to anyone or anything, and the one constant through all those years she spent alone was music. When she finally met Alex, everything changed. She was no longer going through the world without anyone there to have her back, and for once, she had an idea where her life was going. And, one of the only things that remained of her old life was her music. But, even though she knew Alex wouldn’t mind, even though Alex always made sure that Maggie felt that her voice was being heard, Maggie couldn’t bring herself to let go of the one constant in her life. She hadn’t allowed anyone to hear her sing since she was seven years old, and the thought of that changing terrified her.

 So, when Kara was feeling especially happy and suddenly burst into song, pulling Alex along with her, Maggie didn’t join in, she just watched with a small smile on her face. When game night sometimes turned into impromptu karaoke night, Maggie sat back and enjoyed the company of her friends rather than jumping in with them. When she did sing, she did it under her breath, or when she was alone in the house.

 Alex noticed Maggie’s hesitation when it came to singing after the first few times she’d declined Kara’s invitation to sing, and had even asked her about it once, but she read Maggie’s careful avoidance of the subject as a sign to not press too much for answers, for which Maggie was grateful, because she couldn’t explain her reluctance if she tried. So, Alex stopped trying to make Maggie join in on the Danvers sister’s jam sessions, and instead just let her enjoy watching her two favourite girls sing their heart out.

One day, when Kara was getting prepared to go on her first date with Lena and needed some help dressing up she asked for Maggie to come along with Alex. Alex had gotten there before her, and when Maggie walked into Kara’s apartment, she heard loud music and saw that Kara and Alex, having abandoned their makeup brushes and hairpins, were wildly jumping and dancing around the loft singing. They were so carefree and full of joy, that for the first time since she was a child, Maggie wanted to just completely let go and get into the music.

 But, there was still something inside of her that wouldn’t let her. It was the same thing that had stopped her every time Kara had tried to drag her along with her to join in singing the lyrics to whatever classic song came onto her playlist, and it made Maggie’s heart swell with fear, because maybe she would never be able to sing aloud in front of others again. Maybe she was never going to get over her fears.

Except this time, she knew she was safe. This time, she knew she had people that would love her no matter what. So, this time, when Alex, having lost herself in the moment, pointed at her, she joined in. This time, Maggie belted out the lyrics, because this time, she finally felt like she was home.

 At first, Alex looked somewhat taken aback, but it only lasted a second, because then Kara was there, with her arm around Maggie, practically screaming, and Alex followed suit, because her favourite part of the song was here.

 “Pretty young thing! Repeat after me! Say NA, NA, NA!” All three of them were shouting now, all preparation for Kara’s date forgotten.

 Maggie felt ecstatic, and the second the song was over, Alex came over to her and kissed her so passionately that she wondered why she hadn’t done this sooner.

 “Uh, guys?” Kara said, before their kiss turned into something else, something more, “Can we maybe keep it PG? You know, ’cause the kid sister is here, too?”

 Maggie laughed and turned to Kara, “Sure, kid, we can continue this later.”

 Kara groaned, and Maggie looked back at Alex, “So, I’m guessing you like my singing?”

 Alex was beaming so brightly that Maggie forgot to breathe, “It’s perfect.” She was looking down at Maggie with such pride in her eyes that her heart skipped a beat.

 Maggie’s mind was racing from the rush of finally having this weight lifted off her shoulders, and from having Alex’s lips on hers, Alex’s hands running through her hair, and she just barely got the words out before the next song came on.

 “ _You’re_ perfect, Alex.” And, with that, she grabbed Alex’s hand and danced her around the room, picking a hairbrush to use as a mike along the way. They sang song after song, and they lost track of time, so when it came time for Lena to pick Kara up, they were still lost in their own world.

 When Lena got to Kara’s apartment, they were all a mess, still jumping around the apartment joyfully and singing their hearts out. And, so, when Lena finally knocked at the door, no one heard her. It took a minute for them to even notice she had already walked in, and another second for Kara to run across the apartment to turn off the music, the red already creeping up her face.

 “Lena! We were just- I was just- umm, well, here’s the thing- Alex came over to help me get ready, and well, Michael Jackson was on, and- well…” Kara stuttered, embarrassment plain on her face.

 But, Lena just smiled amusedly and bit her lip. “No need to explain, Kara, I knew what I was getting myself into when I decided to start dating you. Honestly, I think it’s charming.”

 Kara’s face was getting redder by the minute, but Lena saved her the embarrassment of another barely coherent response and just extended her arm and said, “Shall we?”

 Kara’s face lit up, and all she could do was nod and loop her arm around Lena’s as she led her out the door. Right before the door closed, she turned back to Alex and Maggie and mouthed ‘Thank you!’, and with that, she was gone.

 “So…” said Alex, “Now that we’re alone, you wanna get back to that non- PG stuff we were talking about…?”

 Maggie’s eyes widened, and for a second, she looked at the woman she loved. She couldn’t help but think back to what she had told Alex about her being perfect, because she was. She had replaced so many of Maggie’s bad memories with good ones, and this just added another one to the list. And, for the first time in her life, Maggie thought that maybe, just maybe, she didn’t have to hide anymore.

 But, instead of trying and failing to articulate this to Alex, Maggie made sure to kiss her so that she knew just how special she was to Maggie, just how much she was loved.

 And she knew, Lord did she know.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	11. Past Mistakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At first when Alex hears that Maggie cheated on Emily she can barely believe it, but she comes to terms with it and talks it out with Maggie with some fluff at the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so it's pretty late at night while I'm writing this, so if there's any mistakes or things you think I should change, let me know! Also, the show is going on hiatus, so send me any prompts you want me to write!

Alex had always had a sense of needing to protect the people she loved. She had always hated to see the people she cared about get hurt. And, she saw how disappointed Maggie was when Emily didn’t show up, even though she tried to hide it, because Alex knew Maggie. She knew the subtleties in Maggie’s expressions. She knew the way Maggie hid the hurt with a smile, and it pained her to see Maggie like that. It broke Alex’s heart to see Maggie’s smile, usually so genuine and full of joy, fail to reach her eyes.

 So, when she saw how anxious Maggie was the entire time they were waiting in the restaurant, she couldn’t bear to just let Maggie go without answers. She had to do _something_ about it. And she did. She remembered how Emily had mentioned that she was staying at the Baldwin, and so, the second she was free from work, she headed over. She didn’t even know what she was going to do, just that she wanted- no, needed- answers. When she finally got to the Baldwin, she spent at least half an hour constantly reconsidering and rethinking her decision to show up at the hotel. It _was_ pretty stalker-like of her to show up at Emily’s hotel without a word, after all. Maybe this hadn’t been as good of an idea as she had previously thought.

 But, just as she was about to leave, she looked up and there she was.

 “Emily,” Alex breathed, trying to look as confident as she could, so as not to let Emily see how anxious she was to be doing this.

 Emily hesitated for a split second before answering, “Alex, right?”

 “Yeah,” Alex took a deep breath and continued, “I wanted to come see you, wanted to… talk to you, just to see if-”

 But, before Alex could finish her thought, Emily cut her off, “Look, if this is about dinner…”

 “Why didn’t you show up?” Alex asked, emboldened by Emily’s hesitancy.

 “I should’ve, but… the whole situation, it just brought up too many painful memories.”

 At this, Alex was taken aback. How could this woman talk about painful memories when it was her fault that she and Maggie had broken up in the first place?

 “What about Maggie?” she asked, “All the things you said to her back then, that wasn’t painful?”

 “Anything that I said to her, she had coming.” Emily retorted, and Alex could tell she meant it.

 “She dedicated five years of her life to you, and you _bailed_ on her,” Alex could not believe her ears. How could Emily be so callous as to hurt a woman who spent five years of her life building a relationship with her, and then turn around and say she deserved it?

 “ _I_ bailed on her?” Emily scoffed, “Seriously? That’s what- that’s what she told you? She _cheated_ on me.”

 Alex’s heart dropped. Her mouth went dry, and her mind was racing, trying to comprehend how Maggie- _her_ Maggie, the woman that she loved, could do such a thing.

 “Sorry, I- I didn’t know,” She looked down, unable to meet the eyes of the woman who was looking at her with sadness in her eyes, who Alex knew was telling the truth, because why wouldn’t she be, and Alex couldn’t think, and she couldn’t breathe, and she just needed to get out of there, she needed to get answers.

 “I- I shouldn’t have said anything… but, the truth is, I just… really wanna forget about it.” Emily was smiling at her sadly, but Alex could barely hear her, could barely look at her, because how could she have been so stupid as to come here thinking she knew the whole story, when she didn’t. How could she have once again, made the mistake of being bold, and once again, being rejected.

 “Sorry, I’m- I’m gonna go,” she just barely managed to choke out the words before she started walking, walking, walking, away from Emily, away from the harsh reality of what she had just discovered, away from having her world shattered, because how could it be that Maggie- _Maggie,_ the woman that just this morning was dragging Alex to her yoga class, who’d spent most of that same yoga class taking Alex’s breath away with how stunning she looked and how focused she was, who’d spent most of the time walking back home flirting with Alex, just for an opportunity to see her smile, to pull her close, to plant a swift, soft kiss on her lips- had cheated on a woman that she claimed to love.

 Alex couldn’t figure out how the Maggie she knew could be the same person that had cheated on Emily all those years ago.

 So, when she got to her apartment, Alex took a deep breath. She decided to give Maggie the benefit of the doubt, or at least to just hear her out, and she tried to silence the intrusive thoughts in her mind, because all her biggest fears were coming to the surface. All her insecurities, all her doubts about ever being able to be happy without anything going wrong, were all bubbling up and getting ready to overflow.

 But Alex just tried to breathe. Breathe, like she had done this morning at yoga class. She unlocked her door, and she leaned on her counter, where her trusty bottle of whisky was sitting. She knew she probably shouldn’t take a drink, but she was pretty sure that this situation warranted at least one glass.

 Yet, she couldn’t bring herself to do it. She couldn’t bring herself to pour one out alone, not just yet. So, she sent a quick text to Maggie, just six words; “come over, we need to talk”, and she sat down and she thought.

 She thought about all the reasons Maggie would cheat, and she was surprised to find, that whatever her reasons were, she wasn’t mad at Maggie for cheating. She was just frustrated that Maggie hadn’t told her the truth, because she should have known that Alex was going to be there to support her no matter what. But, apparently, she didn’t.

 The more Alex thought about it, the more she noticed a pattern. This wasn’t the first time Maggie had kept something to herself. And, Alex realized that though she herself was new to a relationship like this, so was Maggie. Maggie had never had anyone that she could trust enough to tell this kind of stuff, so when it came to Alex, she didn’t know how to. So, Alex made a decision. She was not going to judge Maggie on her past. Instead, she was going to make sure Maggie didn’t repeat the same mistake in the future.

 By the time Maggie got to her apartment, Alex had carefully thought out what she was going to say. As she heard the lock clicking open, she poured out two glasses of whisky and steeled herself for what was to come.

 “Hey,” said Maggie, closing the door, “What’s so urgent?”

 Alex set the bottle down and leaned on the counter, steadying herself.

 “I went to see Emily.” She explained simply.

 “What, why?” Maggie asked.

 “Well, I wanted to go talk to her after seeing how upset you were at the restaurant,” Alex stated, “I went… to go stick up for you.”

 “Alex-“ Maggie sighed, “It’s not your problem to fix.”

 Alex paused and looked at her girlfriend. She wanted a second before she confirmed her fears, before she dropped a bomb on Maggie.

 “You were never gonna really tell me that you cheated on her, were you,” she finally managed to say.

 Maggie scoffed disbelievingly and looked away briefly before stammering, “That wa- that was a long time ago. I did a horrible thing,” she frowned, “And I already feel bad about it, you want to bring it up? So, I can feel worse?”

 Maggie turned around and started to walk away towards the couch, and before Alex could lose her, she rounded the counter and explained, “No, no, no look. This isn’t about the fact that you cheated. Ok? We have all done dumb things.” She approached the couch with the two glasses of whisky, setting them down on the table as she continued, “This is about the fact that you don’t trust me enough to tell me the truth.”

 “I _wanted_ to.” Maggie asserted.

 “Listen, I’ve thought a lot about this. And, you have a pattern of keeping things to yourself” Alex said pointedly, “You hid the truth about Emily, you made her seem like the bad guy, and then before that, you didn’t tell me what really happened when you came out to your parents, and how badly they reacted.”

 Alex could see that her words were hitting home with Maggie in the way that she was trying to keep herself together, in the way she was struggling to keep her expression neutral, even while she was fighting back tears, and she continued, because she needed Maggie to hear what she had to say next, because she needed Maggie to know that it was ok, and that she could trust Alex to be there for her no matter what.

 “You don’t like to talk about you.”

 “I know,” Maggie interjected, because she was not prepared for another girl to give up on her, and she was just so exhausted of having to explain herself.

 “So, I think that when your parents didn’t accept you… you stopped trusting people that are closest to you, and… I totally get that.” She could see the relief flooding onto Maggie’s face as she went on, “But Maggie, you don’t have to be guarded with me, okay? I’m not here to judge you for things that happened in the past I am here to help you heal.”

 Maggie finally looked at her and asked with a voice heavy with the weight of the world, “You don’t think I’m a bad person?”

 “No.” Alex said firmly, taking Maggie into her arms, wrapping her arms around her as she began to sob, and encapsulating her in her warmth so that Maggie knew that she was safe, that she always had a home inside of Alex.

 “Thank you,” Maggie finally said, after she pulled back.

 Her face was wet with tears, and Alex pulled her close, kissed them away, and traced her fingers along the lines of Maggie’s cheekbones soothingly.

 “Alex… I-” she paused, considering her next words very carefully, because she had never said them to anyone but her parents. She had always been too scared of being disappointed and abandoned once again.

 But sitting right across from her was the woman who had accepted her without asking for anything in return, who had shown her that she deserved love, that she deserved to be happy, the woman who she knew she wanted to spend the rest of her life with, and the words didn’t seem so daunting anymore.

 “Alex, I love you.”

 She held her breath, not sure of what was to come, before Alex responded, “I love you, too, Maggie. Always.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	12. The Light they Found in Each Other

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happened after the scene where Maggie went to talk to Emily in 2x17.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from Anon: the sanvers kiss in 2x17 tho! got me in the feels. maybe you could write something about what happened afterwards?
> 
> Of course I can! I live for Sanvers scenes. Here ya go, and I hope you like it!

“So, how’d it go?” Alex asked, as Maggie made her way back over to the car after talking to her ex, Emily.

“Good. Thank you for making me do that.” Maggie said, gratefully.

 “Hey, it was all you,” Alex reminded her, “You just needed a little push.”

 “Still,” insisted Maggie, “I couldn’t have done it without your ‘little push’.”

 “Well,” replied Alex, looking deep into Maggie’s eyes, “I’m always happy to help.” And, then, looking after Emily, she asked, “You guys talking about me at the end there?”

 “Yeah,” Maggie grinned, “she said how lucky I am to have you.”

 “She’s right,” Alex smirked, and then she pulled Maggie by the jacket and kissed her softly, tenderly, because Maggie’s smile was so full of love and adoration, and Maggie’s smile could light up the city at night-time, and Maggie’s smile was the most beautiful thing Alex had ever seen.

 And, then, Maggie pulled back and simply said, “Let’s go,” because she knew that if they didn’t leave now, they would never make it home before their kiss turned into something a lot less public-friendly. And, Alex, having understood what Maggie was doing, followed her to the car.

 So, Maggie let Alex drive her home, never letting go of her hand, because this woman, this beautiful woman with so much love in her heart had given her what no one had ever bothered to; acceptance.

 This woman had learned that she had cheated on her ex girlfriend, and instead of judging her, or instead of excusing it as a mistake, had accepted it as a part of Maggie’s past that was not to be overlooked, but also not to be stressed. For the first time in her life, someone had accepted Maggie for who she was here and now, not what they wanted her to be, not what she used to be, but who she was. Even more than that, Alex had done it without being asked, without conditions, and just the thought of that made Maggie feel like maybe she was worth it.

* * *

 

 “So, where were we?” Maggie asked, locking the apartment door behind her when they got home.

 “Well,” Alex flirted back, moving closer to Maggie as she slipped out of her boots, “You were a lot closer to me, and I was pulling you by the jacket, kind of like this.”

 Alex took Maggie’s jacket into her hand for the second time that night, and pulled her in for a kiss, except this time, Maggie didn’t pull back. This time, she lets the kiss deepen, until they’re both stumbling their way over to the bed, giggling into the kiss, and Maggie falls back onto the bed.

 Alex leans down to kiss her again, running her hands through Maggie’s hair, tracing circles on her cheeks, and the electricity that passes between them reminds Maggie of how new this all is, and how fast she’s fallen for Alex. Even just the thought of how much love she has in her heart for Alex is overwhelming, and she can’t help but pull back and try to slow down her racing mind.

 Alex straightened up immediately, her eyes flying open, and she searched Maggie’s face for signs of discomfort, for any indicators of what went wrong.

 “What happened? Is everything ok? Did I-”

 “No, no, Alex, you’re perfect.” Maggie reassured her, “I was just thinking.”

 “Thinking…?” Alex repeated with a hint of a question.

 “Alex,” she bit her lip, “I’ve never had anything like this before.” Maggie was looking up at her with an expression that was familiar to Alex. She was looking at her the way she looked at the stars. She looked mesmerized, almost like she couldn’t believe Alex was standing right in front of her. Most of all, she looked gorgeous, and the surrealness of the moment took Alex’s breath away.

 “You are so amazing, Ally. You really are one of a kind.”

 “Maggie,” Alex’s voice was barely a whisper.

 “No, Alex, really. I mean, I’ve been in relationships before, but… I’ve never been- never felt like this before. You are amazing, Alex, and you don’t even know it. I don’t know what I did to find a girl like you, but I’m going to try to be what you deserve. I love you. So much. And, I wanna spend every moment trying to be good enough for you.”

 And, when Alex looked into her eyes, when she saw the raw vulnerability that she knew was something Maggie had been holding back for so many years, she knew that she meant it. She knew that every word coming out of Maggie’s mouth was genuine. And it made her heart flutter, and her stomach drop from the emotion that was building up inside of her.

 “Oh, Maggie. You are more than enough. You have _always_ been. If I have to spend the rest of our lives trying to prove that to you, I will. I love you, Maggie. Like I’ve never loved anyone.”

 And, suddenly, the space between her and Maggie felt enormous, so Alex leaned down to close the gap, and Maggie matched her movement by bringing her face up to meet Alex’s. They stayed like that for a second their foreheads pressed together, just taking the moment in, memorizing every part of each other’s faces, until being apart became too overwhelming in itself, and Alex moved down to meet Maggie’s lips with her own.

 All through the night, they reminded each other of how much they were cared for, and how beautiful they were, how intelligent, strong, brave, they were. Every touch was a reminder of how much they were needed, and every kiss an expression of their devotion to each other. 

* * *

 

 By the time the sun came up in the morning, neither one of them had any doubts about how much they were loved. They knew they were perfect for each other. And, they finally figured out why they broke down their defences so easily after a lifetime of building them up, just so that they could love each other.

 They knew that after stumbling around in the darkness their whole lives, they raced towards the light that they found in each other, and when their eyes finally adjusted to the brightness, they could see that they were home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	13. April Fools

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sanvers, Supercorp, and Superfriends April fool’s. Kara tries to prank Lena, Lena doesn’t understand how to prank people, tries, but fails miserably to prank Kara bc like, she’s never pranked anyone before, Alex pranks Maggie perfectly, Winn and James prank war, J’onn is just shaking his head at all his kids.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, as you can probably tell from the Summary, this chapter is a fucking mess, so enjoy!

Alex had never been one to participate in April fool’s day pranks. Kara had always been the one to go all out to try to prank Alex, and even that was an overstatement, because Kara’s pranks… well, even just referring to them as pranks would be generous. But, when Alex woke up to find that Maggie had stuck a post-it note on her forehead with the words, Happy April Fool’s, Danvers. Bring it on!’, she knew she had to think of something fast.

Maggie had already gone to work, and left a mug of coffee on the kitchen counter for Alex, which she carefully observed for any signs of tampering before drinking. She completed her morning routine extra carefully, making sure that Maggie hadn’t messed with any of her stuff before using it. By the time she made it out the door, Alex’s mind was racing trying to figure out what Maggie had planned for her, while simultaneously trying to plot the perfect prank.

* * *

Kara’s eyes snapped open exactly two minutes before her alarm was set to ring. Usually, she had to hit snooze several times before she woke up, but not today. Today was one of her favourite days of the year. April first. Ever since she had landed on earth, she’d had difficulty understanding the roots behind most of the American holidays, but April Fool’s day had always reminded her of the Spring equinox back on Krypton, when it was tradition to play pranks on friends and family. She had many fond memories of teaming up with her Aunt Astra to trick her parents.

 So, it was only natural that every year, Kara made sure to keep up with the tradition and try to prank all of her friends and family. And, this year, she had quite the day planned, all starting with the woman who had been sleeping next to her all night.

 She reached out to her side, and saw that Lena was already out of bed, an imprint of her silhouette in the sheets the only indicator of her ever having been there. Kara rubbed her eyes and looked around the apartment for her girlfriend, her eyebrows furrowed, and upon seeing that the door to the bathroom was open, the shower running, steam wafting out of the door, she relaxed a little. She slipped out of bed and walked over to the kitchen to find something to eat. They had a long night, and Kara was starving.

 “Morning, gorgeous,” a sultry voice drawled from behind her, a slight Irish accent slipping through.

 Kara turned around, a piece of toast hanging out of her mouth, to see Lena, nothing but a towel wrapped around her, her damp hair hanging down around her face, her green eyes looking Kara up and down, a small smile tugging at her lips, and Kara’s jaw dropped open.

 “G- good morning,” Kara stuttered, scrambling to pick up her slice of toast from the floor.

 “You’re up early today,” Lena observed.

 “Yeah, well, you know me. Busy, busy,” Kara was still clambering to clean up the crumbs from the floor, flustered as ever, and the fact that Lena was slowly, seductively walking towards her was not helping.

 “Here, let me get that,” Lena said, bending over to help Kara wipe the last of the crumbs off the floor.

 “Thanks,” Kara finally pulled herself together and looked Lena in the face. Her hunger had taken priority once more. “Are you hungry? I was going to go to Noonan’s before work to get some sticky buns.”

 “I’m afraid I have to take a rain check,” Lena admitted, “I have an early morning at work today.”

 “Ah, ok.” Kara was making her way to the bathroom now. “We’re still on for game night with the whole gang, though, right?”

 “Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Lena smiled.

 As Kara was making her way out of the bathroom, Lena gave her a little kiss, and made her way out the door, calling behind her as she went, “I’ll see you later, babe.”

* * *

As Kara stepped out of the elevator of CatCo Media, the first thing she saw was Winn howling with laughter and James animatedly yelling at him. As she got closer, she could clearly hear what he was shouting about.

 “It’s not funny, Winn! How do I change my screen so that it’s right side up again?” 

 “Kara!” Winn greeted ecstatically when he saw her walk in to James’ office.

 “Good morning!” Kara answered cheerily.

 “It certainly is.” Winn grinned wickedly.

 “Alright, what’s going on in here?” Kara asked when James gave her a pointed look.

 “Winn turned all of my computer screens upside down, and he won’t tell me how to fix them.” James accused.

 “Oh, James,” Kara sighed, “That’s the oldest trick in the book. Here, let me fix your computers for you.”

 “See you later, Olsen,” Winn teased as he slipped out the door.

 “Oh, it’s on, Schott!” James called after him.

 Kara was halfway through fixing James’ computers before she felt her phone buzzing, and was surprised to see Lena’s contact flashing on the screen.

 “Hello?” She said, as James gestured wildly for her to fix his computers so he could go back to work.

 “Kara!” Lena answered, “It seems that someone snuck into my office in the middle of the night and turned all of my picture frames and paintings upside down.”

 “Oh, wow, who would do that?” Kara tried to sound oblivious as a slight giggle started to slip into her voice.

 “I was wondering the same thing,” Lena remarked, “You wouldn’t happen to know anything about it, would you?”

 “What? Me? Pfft. Of- of course not.”

 “Right,” Lena agreed, her voice dripping with sarcasm, “Of course not. Besides, it’s quite a lame prank, don’t you think?” Lena was teasing her now, and she knew it.

 “Well, I wouldn’t say lame,” Kara observed, her face turning red, “Anyway, I should get going. It’s quite the busy day here today.”

 “Oh, I’m sure it is, Kara. I’m sure it is.” Lena replied, mischievously, and Kara could practically hear the gears turning in Lena’s head as she plotted her revenge. She was still wondering how Lena was going to retaliate when Cat started calling her name.

* * *

 Alex had been distracted all day at work in anticipation of Maggie’s promised prank when she finally decided that Maggie was just trying to play her. The real trick was that there was no prank. But she still couldn’t let Maggie win that easily. By lunchtime, she had devised the perfect plan.

She decided to finally give Maggie what she’d been begging Alex to get her for months; a flash grenade. Except, she would have Winn modify it so that it didn’t work when Maggie set it off, and when she tried to see what was wrong with, it would spray her with glitter.

 She figured it was a pretty solid prank, but when she mentioned it to Winn, he had a different response.

 “Well of course I’ll do it, but glitter? That’s it?”

 “You don’t get it,” explained Alex excitedly, “ The glitter will never come off!”

 “Well… I get that, but… isn’t that a problem for you, too? Like, aren’t you two bed buddies or something?” Winn just narrowly dodged a smack to the head from Alex at that.

 “Just shut up and do it,” Alex sneered.

 “Alright, alright!” Winn caved, “I’m not sure J’onn would be okay with this, though.”

 “Okay with what?” A deep voice asked from behind them, and even with all of Alex’s DEO training, she jumped at the sound of J’onn’s tone.

 “Wha- Oh, nothing,” Alex tried to keep her voice even, “Winn’s just doing me a favour. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”

 “Uh huh,” J’onn crossed his arms, “Don’t you have an alien to transfer, Agent Danvers?”

 “Right, of course, sir.” Alex sped out of the room, avoiding J’onn’s gaze.

 Winn gave a little chuckle. “Kids, right?” he said, turning to J’onn, but with one look at his boss’ judgemental expression, he, too, ran after Alex.

* * *

 Winn had had a long day at the office, and when he was just about ready to take a lunch break, he found to his surprise that someone had left a box of donuts on his desk. He knew how fast donuts went in the DEO, with all the agents specially trained in stamina beating him to any leftovers, so he didn’t hesitate to take a bite out of the first one he grabbed, before spitting it out.

 “Bleh!” He shouted, seeing all heads turn his way, and when he reached for his bottle of water, he found that all of the water had been replaced with some sort of a blue liquid substance that looked like mouthwash.

 He heard loud familiar voice from behind him, and as he turned around, he found that James was doubled over with laughter, clutching at his stomach, struggling for breath.

 “What _was_ that?” Winn shouted, the minty flavour of the ‘cream’ from the donut failing to leave his tongue even as he spoke. “Was that toothpaste?”

 “Got you,” James just managed to gasp out the words before he doubled over once again and started to guffaw.

 “Ugh! You better watch out, Olsen!” Winn shouted, as he ran to the washroom to rinse his tongue.

 When James’ laughter finally subsided and he straightened up, he saw to his mortification that J’onn was standing there with his arms crossed and a disapproving look on his face.

 “J’onn!” James greeted with his most winning smile, “how’s it going?”

 “Having fun, Mr. Olsen?” J’onn simply asked.

 “I’ll see myself out,” James hurried towards the exit under J’onn’s critical glare.

* * *

 When Kara finally got home after a long day of running errands for Cat and Snapper Carr, as well as stopping two robberies and a car chase, she was looking forward to spending game night with her friends. But, as she walked into her kitchen, she immediately noticed a post-it note on her fridge. Before she got to read it, though, there was a knock at her door, and Alex, James and Winn strolled in, carrying several bags of potstickers from her favourite takeout place.

 “Ohh, you guys are the best!” Kara exclaimed, as she made a beeline for the potstickers.

 “Hey, hey, hands off!” Winn shouted, as Kara jumped over him for the potstickers, “Jeez, girl, at this rate, they’ll all be gone by the time Maggie and Lena get here.”

 “What about me?” Lena asked, walking in behind Alex, several pizza boxes stacked neatly in her arms.

 “How does she do that?” Winn asked, a bewildered expression on his face. “She makes carrying pizza boxes look good.”

 “Lena! You’re here!” Kara cheered through a mouthful of potstickers.

 “Hi, guys,” Maggie greeted, coming in behind Lena, several pints of vegan ice cream in her hands.

 “Hi, babe,” Alex said, with a swift kiss to Maggie’s lips.

 “Maggie! You’re a lifesaver! You can keep the ice cream in the freezer.” Kara gratefully guided Maggie to the fridge.

 As she was about to open the refrigerator, her attention was drawn once again to the post-it note stuck onto the centre of the door. She could now see that the words, ‘April Fools’ were scrawled onto it in perfect cursive.

 As she tentatively opened the door, her jaw dropped to the floor. From the very top shelf to the drawers at the bottom, the fridge was chalk-full of Kara’s favourite food, from potstickers to gyro to sushi, everything and anything that Kara could possibly think of eating was in the fridge.

 “Uh… Kara? Is your fridge supposed to be that full?” Asked Winn as he walked into the kitchen.

 It took a second, but when Kara looked back at the precise writing on the note, realization dawned on her face, and she started beaming.

 “Lena?” Kara called, “Can you come into the kitchen, please?”

 “Yes, Kara?” Lena said, feigning an oblivious expression, “is everything all right?”

 “Lena… did you try to prank me by filling my fridge with food?” Kara asked, giggling.

 “Filling your fridge with food?” Lena inquired, quirking her eyebrow slightly, “I would never.”

 Slowly, as everyone understood what was going on, the kitchen became full with the sound of laughter.

 “Lena, that’s not a prank!” Kara gasped through her fits of giggling, “It’s really more of a gift!”

 “I have to say, A-plus for originality, though,” Maggie choked out.

 For the first time in her life, Lena’s face felt hot with embarrassment, and Kara, noticing, rushed to her side.

 “Lena, you’re amazing, you know that?” She asked, taking Lena’s hands into her own, and giving her a kiss on the cheek. Turning back to everyone, she said, “Why don’t I get a head start on all this food, and we set up the games?”

 Lena looked at her gratefully, happy to have everybody’s attention turned away from herself and back onto the food.

 And, so they played games for hours, and Kara made good on her promise to finish all the food in the fridge, and Lena looked around at Kara’s big, dysfunctional family, and she happily noted that she no longer had only one friend in National City.

 “Oh!” Alex remembered, right before the clock chimed twelve, “I have a present for you, Maggie!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	14. The Last Prank

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex finally gives Maggie the flash grenade she's been badgering Alex for, but things don't all go as planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, guys, since you liked the last chapter so much, I decided to continue on. Enjoy!

“Oh!” exclaimed Alex, right before the clock chimed twelve on April Fool’s Day, “I have a present for you, Maggie!”

 She ran to her bag in the living room and rummaged around in it as five sets of eyes turned her way, the large grandfather clock in Kara’s apartment signalling the turn of a new day.

 “Is that so, Danvers?” Maggie asked after the tolling of the clock subsided. “Is this another April Fool’s prank?”

 “Nope, no prank.” Alex said, turning around to face Maggie with her hands hiding something behind her back. “I just got the opportunity to steal this away while J’onn was distracted by Winn and James’ antics.”

 Alex finally brought her hands out from behind her back and showed everyone what she had been talking about. She smirked at Maggie’s bewildered expression, and couldn’t help but laugh at Kara’s alarmed one.

 “Is that a _grenade_?” Kara asked in disbelief, staring at the black, cylindrical object in Alex’s palm, her hand on Lena’s arm, as if to shield her from the explosive.

 “It’s… it’s a flash grenade,” Maggie stuttered, her eyes wide with awe.

 “Is that even legal?” James couldn’t believe that Alex would actually steal a grenade, even for her girlfriend.

 “Well, technically, this technology doesn’t even exist, so legality isn’t really an issue,” Alex informed him with a tilt of her head and a sly smile.

 Maggie reached for the grenade, and Alex pulled back before Maggie could get her hands on it.

 “Unh Uh,” Alex met her girlfriend’s puzzled gaze with a smirk, “What’s the magic word?”

Maggie put on her most dazzling smile, so that Alex’s heart gave a little flutter, and played along.

 “Please?” She sweetly requested, and when Alex put her hands out, Maggie excitedly seized the grenade and immediately started toying with the various controls.

 “It has different settings!” Maggie could barely contain her excitement. “What do you say we go try it out at the shooting range, Danvers?”

 “Oh my _god,”_ Winn said in disbelief, “I didn’t even know Maggie Sawyer had the capacity to giggle.”

 “You tell anyone about this,” Maggie turned to him, eyebrows narrowed, “and I’ll throw you in jail.”

 “Tha- that’s just a joke, right?” Winn stuttered.

 Kara put a hand on his shoulder as Maggie squealed, “It has a test setting!”

 “Oh, no, Maggie, don’t test that in-” Alex started, but before she could even finish her sentence, the grenade was already in the air, sailing toward the front door, as Maggie yelled, “Take cover!”

 Alex and Maggie ducked behind the couch immediately, James went for the table, pulling Winn down along with him, and Kara simply flew Lena out of the window swiftly.

 They all waited for a loud bang and a flash, but it never came. Instead, there was a big pop, and they all heard a sound like tiny grains of sand following the ground.

 Maggie looked at Alex questioningly as she waited for the sound to subside, before she ducked her head out from behind the couch, and she choked.

 As Kara and Lena swooped back into the apartment, Alex could see their eyes widen in shock as they looked towards the door, and when she looked towards James and Winn, she saw that both of them had a mortified expression on their faces.

 She only hesitated a second before pulling herself up, rounding to face whatever had everybody so shocked, readying her body for a fight, like she was trained to do.

 But, when she turned around to see whatever alien or human was going to try to kill them next, she realized that the threat was not foreign.

 Standing at the door, covered from head to toe in glitter, arms crossed as always, glaring somehow at everyone at the same time, was their very own Martian father figure, J’onn J’onzz.

 “What,” he yelled, “the hell is this?”

 “J’onn!” Winn tried, “It’s nice to see you! You look absolutely radiant!” Winn tried to joke, but when J’onn fixed him with a dangerous stare, he shut up immediately.

 “J’onn.” Alex’s hands were out, as if in surrender, “I can explain.”

 “Oh, I’m sure you can,” he responded, “I already have Pam from HR preparing a heap of paperwork for you.”

 “Ooh, Alex, you’re in trou-ble,” Winn teased.

 “Oh, and as for you,” J’onn rounded on him, and even covered in glitter, he looked fierce, “You think I haven’t figured out by now how my top agent somehow managed to steal a highly guarded grenade and modify it, all while being out in the field all day without alerting me? I may not be a technical genius like you, Mr. Schott, but you have to give me more credit than that. There’s a stack of paperwork with your name on it waiting for you on your desk.”

 J’onn’s words wiped the smirk off of Winn’s face faster than it came, and James put a hand on his shoulder, a pitying expression on his face.

 “Forget about paperwork!” Kara exclaimed, “What about my apartment? It’s coated with glitter!”

 “I think the bigger question is,” Maggie turned back to face Alex, her arms crossed, “Why is there glitter coming out of my flash grenade?”

 “April fool’s!” Alex said with a shy smile, and, seeing the timid look on Alex’s face, Maggie couldn’t help but laugh and gift her a swift, reassuring kiss.

 “Cute prank, Danvers,” she offered, “but you still owe me a flash grenade. A _real_ one this time.”

 “Yeah, that’s not happening,” J’onn insisted, “I can’t believe you went to all this trouble for a prank, Agent Danvers. I knew Mr. Schott here was capable of such foolishness, but I didn’t expect this from my top agent.”

 “Hey! I am not foolish!” Winn claimed.

 “J’onn, not to say I’m not hearing you, but I really can’t take you seriously when you’re covered in all that glitter.” Kara giggled.

 At this, J’onn crossed his arms once more as everybody broke out into laughter at how ridiculous he looked, covered in the sparkly substance.

 “It’s actually a pretty good look on you. The sparkle really brings out your eyes.” Kara choked out.

 Even Lena couldn’t help but grin at her ridiculous new family, and as she looked at J’onn, she saw that even he didn’t look as angry as he was trying to, and she understood why, because she knew that, like her, he had found his family in this ridiculous group of delinquents, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	15. I Call it Magic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pretty much just a whole lot of build up to a Sanvers kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from Anon: I NEED SANVERS PASSIONATE KISS
> 
> Have all the Sanvers passionate kisses!

It had been a rough week. Not only that, but it had been a long week. It seemed that all the criminals in the city, both human and alien, had chosen that week to come out of hiding and wreak havoc on National City.

The authorities were overworked, to say the least, including the DEO and the NCPD. Both Alex and Maggie had been working overtime to do their part to help out, and each had several scars, bruises, and various other injuries to show for it. They had been running on minimal sleep, and suffice it to say, they were exhausted. Both on a physical level, due to the beating their bodies had taken over the past few days, but also mentally and emotionally, from the strain of trying to stay one step ahead of every criminal in National City.

 So, it was no surprise that, in the past week, they had not been able to see much of each other, and knowing each other, they knew that they were both constantly risking their lives to save others, and they were always prepared for the worst.

 So, when Maggie got a call from J’onn in the middle of the day, she knew something was wrong.

 “J’onn.” She tried to keep her voice steady as she steeled herself for what was to come. “Is Alex okay?”

 “Actually, that’s what I’m calling about,” J’onn answered. “She’s going to be fine, but she’s hurt, and I believe it would be best if she goes home to rest.”

 Maggie could sense his hesitation as she waited for him to continue.

 “I believe… it would be best if you were to take her home. I know it’s the middle of the day, and you’re probably at work, but she’s too stubborn to let any of the other agents be distracted from their jobs by her, and I’m afraid you’re the only one that can make her change her mind.” J’onn sounded almost apologetic, which Maggie knew was his way of showing he cared.

 “Of course,” Maggie responded, “I’ll be right over.”

 By the time Maggie walked into the DEO, she could see that Alex was trying to push past one of her coworkers to leave.

 “Jones, if you don’t get out of my way in the next ten seconds, my injury will be the least of your concerns,” Alex cautioned, and then, seeing his terrified expression, she added, “I don’t need anyone to drive me home, I can take care of myself.”

 Maggie stepped in before Alex could follow through on her threat, because even injured, she was clearly stronger than Agent Jones, and they all knew it.

 “Take a hike, Jones, I got this,” Maggie told the frightened agent, and he eagerly ran back to his desk.

 After watching after him for a second, Maggie turned to Alex, who had a slightly irritated expression on her face.

 “I’m guessing J’onn called you?” she asked, her voice sounding guarded.

 “He was worried about you,” Maggie explained, her hand subconsciously going to Alex’s arm to soothe her.

 “I didn’t want you to leave work to come get me,” Alex sighed.

“Come on, babe, you know it’s not a problem. I’m here for you.”

“I’m fine,” Alex said, but her eyes wouldn’t meet Maggie’s, and Maggie knew that there was something wrong.

 “Talk to me, babe. What’s going on?” Maggie tried to keep her voice level, so that Alex knew that she could trust her, so that Alex knew that Maggie was not there to judge her.

 “I- it’s just-” Alex stopped, took a deep breath, and continued. “It’s just been a long week. And, I’m tired of losing. I’m tired of constantly locking criminals up, and yet, somehow, still not doing enough. It’s just never enough.”

 “But there’s more to it, isn’t there?” Maggie asked, because she’s a detective, and she detects. She knows that Alex is still holding back.

 “Yeah,” Alex sighs, “I just can’t help but feel like there’s something we’re missing. Crime’s been down in the city for so long, and the fact that all of a sudden, all the bad guys in National City just decided to act up can’t be a coincidence.”

 “What are you saying, Alex? You think Cadmus has something to do with this?” Maggie searches her eyes for confirmation.

 “I think… Cadmus is up to something. I think they’re trying to hide whatever it is they’re doing behind the crime in the city. And it’s killing me to not be able to figure it out, and it’s _killing_ me to know that they’re doing god knows what with my father, and there’s nothing I can do to stop them. I’m just _so_ tired.” With the last sentence, her voice broke, and Maggie felt her heart breaking along with it, but she tried not to let it show. Alex needed her to be there for her right now.

 “Look, Alex, we’re going to figure this out. I promise. We’re going to do everything in our power to fix this, and it’s going to work. I know it will.” She lifted Alex’s chin with a finger and looked into her eyes. “You know how? I know because we have dedicated, hard-working people like you on our side who are willing to risk everything to make sure that people like Lillian Luthor are put behind bars.”

 She paused, making sure that Alex was really listening to her, before she added, “But, Alex, this is not on you. None of this is your fault, and it’s not your burden to carry. You can’t do this alone, and you certainly don’t have to. I know how badly you want to bring your father home, but you have to take care of yourself, and if not for him, do it for yourself. We’re going to figure this out, and we’re going to do this together. Remember that J’onn, Kara, James Winn, myself, we’re all behind you. Always. And, we’re going to figure out what’s going on. But you can’t do that if you’re too exhausted, too hurt, to think straight. Right now, you need to take care of yourself. Let’s go home. Just for today, and then you can come back tomorrow and try again, okay?”

 Alex looked into Maggie’s eyes, and was surprised to see not pity, not sadness directed towards her, but rather, strength, resolve, and most of all, trust.

 And, it was that trust that made her believe in every word that Maggie had said, and suddenly, it was all too much, and the space between them became too big, so she closed the gap and met Maggie’s lips with hers, and just like that, the world melted away, and it was just the two of them, just the feeling of Maggie’s soft lips on hers, and her silky hair running through her fingers, and Alex tries to pour every ounce of love and trust that she feels for Maggie into this one kiss, because god, does she deserve it, and she could just live in the feeling of Maggie’s hand grasping her elbow, and she never wants to let go.

 That is, until she hears a loud “Ahem,” and she whirls around to see J’onn with his arms crossed, and several agents behind him clapping and wolf whistling. 

 “Maybe you should take this elsewhere,” suggests J’onn, and Alex, already feeling the heat rising in her cheeks, turns back to the woman she loves.

 “Take me home, Maggie.”

* * *

 They barely even made it through the door before Alex had Maggie up against the wall, pinning her arms up, kissing her like it was the first time, kissing her like she was coming up for air, running her hands down Maggie’s arms, through Maggie’s hair. And, Maggie didn’t miss a beat. She met Alex’s lips with the same passion, the same _need_ , because though they might be in Alex’s apartment, they were never truly home until they were together. And, today, _together_ felt like this, felt like Alex’s lips on hers, felt like Alex’s lips parting, felt like Maggie’s tongue darting in, felt like Maggie turning and pinning Alex up against the wall.

 And, for the first time in a week, they were reminded of how, no matter what they faced, they would always have each other to come back to, and so, they had to take a second to stop, and think. So, they just stood there for a moment, foreheads pressed against each other, holding each other’s gaze, and soaking up the raw vulnerability of the moment.

 “I love you,” Maggie sounded breathless, and when Alex looked into her eyes, she knew she meant it. But, there was something else in Maggie’s eyes, too, something that looked like hesitation, and Alex’s hand went immediately to Maggie’s cheek.

 “What’s wrong?”

 “Just… are you sure about this?” Maggie asked.

 “Yeah, I mean, it’s been a crazy week, but this feels right,” Alex carefully explained, and then, “I love you, Maggie,” was the only thing that Alex could say before the heat of the moment took over once again, and their lips met once more. Every touch was electric, every breath sent a shiver down her spine, and though Alex had always believed in logic, she could swear that there was magic in Maggie’s lips. And, all Maggie could think of was how far she would go to make sure that Alex always felt safe, always felt secure, always felt _loved_ , because this woman was the love of her life, and the way she felt when they were together… well, it felt like pure magic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	16. The Long Awaited Moment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maggie introduces Alex to her best friend Adrian for the first time, albeit hesitantly, but Alex helps her get through her nervousness.

It wasn’t that she had never wanted anyone to meet her friends, it was just that most people didn’t care enough to want to get to know Maggie. Most people only wanted what she could offer them, whether that was sex, money, an opportunity to experiment, or some other way to take advantage of her. Most people assumed that she was too caught up with work, with training, with dating, to have any real friends. 

And, Maggie had to admit, they did have somewhat of a point. Ever since she was a teenager, Maggie had had trouble trusting people enough to let them get too close to her. Still, even she couldn’t resist the charm of a certain young queer boy, and through him, she found herself learning to trust people again.

Still, most of her girlfriends hadn’t bothered to get to know her well enough to learn who she called her friends. Besides, Alex Danvers was not most people. Alex wanted Maggie for who she was, all of who she was, and that included getting to know the people she loved. 

So, when Alex asked Maggie to introduce her to her friends, Maggie was happy to comply. She immediately picked up the phone to ask her closest friend over for dinner, and from the tone of his voice, Maggie could tell he was excited.

“This must be some special girl!” Adrian remarked, “I mean, all you have to do now is get her to try some vegan ice cream, and you’re practically married!”

Maggie huffed out in laughter and rolled her eyes, “So, you down for dinner on Friday night?”

“Of course,” Adrian confirmed, “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

When the day finally came, Maggie found that she was much more nervous than she expected herself to be. She kept fidgeting with the tablecloth and double checking to make sure that all the plates were set properly, that all the silverware lined up.

She was readjusting the glasses for what seemed like the millionth time, when Alex came up behind her and wrapped her arms around Maggie’s waist. She traced a line of kisses down Maggie’s neck, and Maggie Immediately felt her shoulders relax, the tension going out of them.

She leaned back into Alex, letting herself be vulnerable the way she could only ever be with Alex, the way she had never thought she would be, until she met this beautiful woman.

“What’s on your mind, Mags?” Alex asked, trying to figure out what it was about dinner that had her girlfriend so anxious.

“Nothing.” Maggie answered, at first, and then, “Or, something, I don’t know.”

“Hey,” Alex reassured, as Maggie turned to face her. “Talk to me, Maggie. I’m here for you.”

Maggie sighed, and looked up at Alex. Her eyes confirmed what she had said, offering only love, offering only acceptance, and so Maggie told her what she was only just now starting to realise for herself.

“I’ve always had trouble with relationships,” Maggie started, “I mean, I’ve never really ever opened myself up to anyone. Not like this, anyway. Not since… Not since Eliza.” She looked up at Alex, and when she saw that Alex was open, that Alex was listening, she continued, “I’ve always kind of had this hole in my heart, ever since my parents kicked me out. And, for the longest time, I tried to fill it by dating, by distracting myself from my real problems. Obviously, that didn’t work, but I never really liked being alone, so I kept at it. It was never really personal, and most of my relationships ended before they started, so I never felt the need to introduce any girls to my friends. I learned to keep that part of me separate. And, eventually, I stopped trying with relationships. Except, now, this is real, you know? What I have with you, it’s real, and it’s true, and it’s just… it’s kind of terrifying. I’m sorry, I’m not making sense, am I?”

Alex was quick to take Maggie’s hands into her, and shake her head. “Not at all, Maggie. I get it.” And, she did, because she, too, had given up on having something real, and she understood why it scared Maggie to finally fully open herself up to someone. 

“Maggie,” Alex sighed, “It’s okay to be afraid. But know that I’m here for you, okay? And, whatever comes, we’ll face it together, one step at a time. I promise.”

Maggie nodded her head, and just as she was about to say something, the bell rang.

She ran for the door, and the second she opened it, she was enveloped in a warm, but bone crushing hug, which she enthusiastically returned.

When they finally pulled back, Maggie regarded Adrian proudly. He was dressed in a brown suit jacket with jeans and sneakers, and she was blown away by how much he had grown since she last saw him.

“It’s been way too long, kid,” Maggie said, and he beamed at her fondly.

“Yes, it has.”

Then, his gaze turned to something, or rather, someone, behind Maggie.

“You must be Alex!” he said, and, seeing her inviting look, he hugged her with the same enthusiasm, if not more, that he had Maggie.

“It’s great to finally meet you, Adrian.” Alex smiled. “Come on in!”

“So,” Alex said, when they finally settled on the couch, “A little birdie told me that you really like Italian food.”

“Oh, yeah,” Maggie could practically see Adrian’s mouth watering already. “It’s my favourite.”

“Well,” Alex grinned, seeing Adrian’s excitement, “ I wasn’t sure if that meant pizza or pasta, so I ordered both.”

“Oh,” Adrian marvelled, turning to Maggie, “this one’s a keeper!”

Maggie laughed, and looked at Alex affectionately. “Yeah. Yeah, she is.”

The doorbell rang again, and Maggie let the two of them talk as she went to get the food from the delivery guy and bring it over to them.

As she came back, she heard Adrian ask, “You like Star Wars?” His eyes widened in excitement, and Maggie saw the same expression mirrored in Alex’s face, as she excitedly exclaimed, “Like them? I love them!”

“Nerds,” Maggie scoffed, setting their plates down in front of them.

“We may be,” said Alex, “But you love us.”

“That I do,” Maggie admitted, kissing Alex in the forehead, and poking Adrian in the side.

And, when it came to picking a movie to watch, Maggie had absolutely no say as Alex and Adrian excitedly loaded up and queued all seven movies “in the order they’re meant to be watched, starting with episode four, of course”, and she didn’t mind, because all she needed was this; her favourite girl, and her favourite guy having the time of their lives, and getting along with each other as if they had known each other forever. 

She couldn’t believe how easily they had become friends, how seamlessly they had slipped into an almost sibling-like dynamic, even though they were from such completely different worlds. They had known each other for less than an hour, and yet, they were already joking around and stealing food from each other, and Maggie’s only regret was that she hadn’t done this sooner.

And, Maggie just watched as two of the most important people in her life whispered and giggled to themselves throughout the show, spouting out random facts, and trying to explain things to Maggie that she didn’t even bother to try to understand, and she wondered how, in a world of 7 billion people, the only two that could make everything better, the only two that could make her feel like she was home again, were sitting right here in this room with her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	17. Always is a Long Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens in Lena's office when Kara goes to comfort her after Jack dies.

The second she changes back into her regular clothes, she’s off again. She’s only in her apartment to change out of her suit as fast as she can, and then, she leaves, because her best friend, the woman she cares about enough to risk everything, is hurting. So, she races over to the L-Corp building as fast as she can without arousing suspicion from the people she passes by on the street.

 She practically sprints the few miles from her apartment to L-Corp, where she knows Lena will undoubtedly be, alone, and pretending to be alright by hiding behind a mound of paperwork, or some other corporate duties. She picks up some flowers on the way, because she knows, that, right now, Lena needs some sense of normalcy, and, the only thing she can come up with in the little time she has is Lena’s love for flowers, so she grabs a vase full of the nicest flowers she can find from the only flower shop that’s open at this time, and makes her way to the business district, where the L-Corp building is situated.

 When she walks by Lena’s secretary Jess, and gets a concerned smile, she knows that Lena’s in a bad place, because Jess was always calm and collected, and if she was worried, then something was definitely wrong.

 She tries to steel herself and prepare for the worst as she walks through the door of Lena’s office, but when she sees Lena’s blank expression, staring off into the distance, looking _empty_ , her heart breaks a little, and right then, she would have done _anything_ to make it better for Lena. But, there’s nothing she can do, and when Lena looks at the flowers and says, “Those are beautiful,” Kara’s heart sinks, because Lena’s voice is so _hollow_ , and Lena’s voice is so full of pain, and there’s nothing she can do about it.

 So, she sets down the flowers, and she tells Lena that she wishes she could do more to help, and, for the first time since she walked in, Lena looks at her, really looks at her, and Kara knows she means it when Lena says, “No, you came to see me, that’s more than enough.”

 “Beth is in jail,” Kara informs Lena, because, though she can’t make things better for Lena, there is at least this small consolation that the woman who killed the man that Lena cared about was being brought to justice and Lena immediately replied, “Good.”

 As she said it, she looked up at Kara once again, with those green eyes that Kara knew so well, except now, she saw inside them something that she had never seen before. Now, she saw anger and resentment, and she saw just how broken Lena was, and how much guilt she felt. She thought this was her fault.

 Kara took a deep breath and moved closer to Lena and sat down on the sofa next to her, so that Lena knew that she didn’t have to be alone, that she wasn’t alone. She wanted Lena to know that she was always going to be there for her, but she couldn’t bring herself to say the words, so instead, she just asked, “How you holding up?”

* * *

 

 At first, Lena didn’t know how to answer. She’d never really been asked the question before, and she couldn’t find any word that quite fit how she was feeling at the moment, so instead, she told Kara what she had never told anyone before. She told Kara about the terrible night when Lex was taken away from her, and about how Lillian was in denial, and about how she didn’t know how to deal with it.

 And, when she told her that she was in shock, Lena unveiled to Kara the burden that she had been carrying with her ever since she realized that her Lex was mad, and that her family was a force of evil. She told Kara about her biggest fear, which was that she really _was_ a bad person, that her name was a curse, and that she would turn out to be just like the rest of her family.

 She searched Kara’s eyes for a sign of agreement, of confirmation, that perhaps Lena was right, perhaps she really was a product of her environment, and there was no changing her.

 Except, Kara looked back at her not with disgust, or with pity. Instead, she didn’t hesitate to show Lena the very opposite. She put her arms around Lena and told her that she didn’t have to be afraid, that she wasn’t going anywhere, and Lena breathed out a sigh in relief, because no one had ever been there for her like this.

 When she met this fresh-faced reporter, she expected her to be just like the others, only there for a story, to use whatever Lena said to her advantage to garner an audience, or the approval of her superiors. Except, Kara proved her wrong every time. Kara had consistently been there for her and stood by her, and so she found herself almost believing Kara. And, yet, she couldn’t, because nobody had ever had faith in her like this, and how could someone so inherently good, like Kara ever want to be friends with her? A _Luthor._ Even just the thought of it was too much, so instead, she just asked her again.

 “Promise?”

 “I will always be your friend,” Kara said, closing the gap between them, and then, she said something that made Lena’s eyes widen, and everything made sense. “I will always protect you. I promise.”

 Lena leaned into Kara and closed her eyes, and, for a moment, it was just the two of them, and, in the warmth of Kara’s embrace, she could almost believe that she deserved something like that, for someone to care like that.

 In Kara’s presence, everything seemed almost okay. Even if just for a moment, all her insecurities melted away, and all of her mother’s conditioning fell away, and she could be truly vulnerable in a way that she had never been allowed to be, had never allowed herself to be.

 “Thank you,” she finally said, after a while of just laying there in Kara’s arms, looking up at her, and, not for the first time, Lena found herself getting lost in the blue of Kara’s eyes, in the warmth and depth of them, and she couldn’t bring herself to look away.

 “Lena?” Kara asked, her voice raw, husky, and mirroring how Lena felt she sounded.

 She wanted to do so much more with Kara right now, wanted to finally take a risk that she had been holding herself back from for weeks, especially now that she saw that Kara felt the same way about her as she did.

 But, right now was not the time. She was still caught up in her grief, and she was still too unstable to want to try anything. She couldn’t do it right now. Not like this. So, instead, she closed her eyes once more, and leaned her head on Kara’s shoulder.

 “Just… can you stay with me?” She asked, because saying anything else right now would just be too much, and she didn’t think she could take it at the moment.

 “Of course,” Kara replied, and she, too, understood that right now was not the time.

 Kara didn’t know how long they sat there like that before they finally fell asleep. She listened to Lena’s heartbeat. It was erratic at first, when she looked into Kara’s eyes. And then, gradually, it slowed down as she finally drifted off into sleep. Kara fell asleep to the sound of Lena’s deep breathing, and for the first time, she found a peace that she hadn’t felt ever since she left her planet at thirteen years old.

 And, the next morning, when they woke up, Lena felt slightly more manageable, because she knew that, no matter what Kara believed in her, and when she looked into her eyes, for the first time since she was adopted at five years old, she found home.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	18. After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the events of 2x19, Alex struggles to come to terms with her trauma, and Maggie helps her get through it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on a prompt from secretdelusionwizard: A cute fluff-filled story about Alex coping with the traumatic events that occurred in tonight's episode, and maggie always being there for her. P.S, thank you for making our wishes come to life. It's a beautiful gift you have to be able todo so much by your way with words.

At first, she tried to go back to her daily routine. She didn’t even think twice of it. She was a soldier, and soldiers didn’t dwell on the past. So, she went back to work at the DEO the moment she was cleared by the doctor, and made herself useful. She spent every waking moment trying to keep herself busy, so as not to let the memories of her trauma catch up with her.

 Still, she found herself waking up screaming in a puddle of her own sweat, as Maggie and Kara held her, telling her she was home, telling her she was safe, telling her she was loved, but the next morning, she got up and got ready to go to work, as if nothing had happened, because she saw the way everybody stared at her, searching her face for any sign of trauma, of fear, of _weakness._

She noticed the way Winn talked differently around her, careful to keep his tone even, his usual banter toned down to be more predictable, his voice softer. She noticed the way James started paying more attention to her, watching her with every word he said, always going the extra mile to make sure she was comfortable.

 And, it killed her to see the people she loved worrying because of her. It killed her to see them having to take time out of their lives just because she couldn’t get it right. Just because they didn’t believe she was strong enough to come out of this without being damaged, yet again. Just because she was another burden on their already stressful enough lives. She needed to try harder.

 So, she brushed Kara and Maggie off when they tried to sit her down and ask her if she wanted to talk about it. She was alright, she insisted, that part of her life was over, and it was time to move on. And, when J’onn mandated her to take at least a week off from the DEO, she put up as much of a protest as she could, because she was fine. She was _fine_. She _was_. Or, at least, that’s what she tried to tell the others, what she tried to tell herself.

 When J’onn finally succeeded in pulling her away from the DEO, she found other ways to distract herself. She washed all her dishes by hand, until they were shining brighter than the day she bought them. She did all her laundry, made sure to separate the lights from the darks, and when she finished with her last load, she organized her entire wardrobe by colour, meticulously placing each shirt on the hanger, each sock in the drawer, and when she ran out of clothes to clean, she looked for other house chores to look after.

 But, eventually, even she ran out of distractions, and when she finally gave up trying to look for ways to preoccupy herself, she realized that she was alone for the first time in days. Until this morning, Maggie and Kara hadn’t left her side, but she had insisted on them going to work, because _someone_ had to make sure the world didn’t erupt into flames while she was off duty.

 This whole time, she had figured that she would finally be able to breathe, without being watched constantly like a ticking time bomb, but the only thing she could feel now, was the silence. Deafening silence, surrounding her, and leaving her stunned. It was profound and sudden, crashing down around her, all at once. It was almost unbearable, and in this silence, the memories of her capture came back to her.

 She remembered the fear she felt as she first opened her eyes in that unfamiliar place, the scent of cold metal in her nose. She recalled the terror when she saw the glass walls, the camera in the corner, remembered putting it together, and immediately going on the offense, threatening her captor, even though she _knew_. She knew there was a chance that she wouldn’t make it out alive, a chance that she wouldn’t be able to take care of Kara, like she had promised herself she would always do, a chance that she would never get to do the things that she had, for the first time in her life, allowed herself to imagine with Maggie.

 She remembered feeling so helpless, and then, so _angry_ , her rage almost blinding as she imagined doing unspeakable acts to her captor for making her go through this, for making her _family_ go through this.

 She remembered her relief when she thought her sister had finally found her, but most of all, she remembered her horror when she realized that it had been a trap, and that she her life was being threatened with the one thing that had always made her feel at home; water. It was one thing to threaten her life, but to imagine drowning, when all her life, water had been her safe place, her refuge from her mother’s high standards, and the pressures of having to teach Kara how to be human, all the while knowing she would never measure up to her power. Of all things, that was what made it personal.

 The burden of all of these thoughts running through Alex’s head was unbearable, and it was all she could do to curl up into a ball on the couch, trying to make herself as small as possible, as if that could protect her from the horrors plaguing her mind.

 She closed her eyes and reminded herself to breathe, counting each breath as it came, trying to turn herself back into the unflinching soldier that she knew herself to be, chanting the words, “I’m okay,” like a mantra, so that maybe she convince herself it was true.

 It was only when she heard the sound of keys turning in the lock that she opened her eyes, and immediately tried to make herself look normal, because on top of everything they had already been through, Maggie didn’t need Alex going crazy on her. So, she grabbed a book from the coffee table, and pretended to read it, just as Maggie walked in, keys in one hand, a box of pizza in the other, her jacket draped over her arm.

 “Hey, you,” she called, face tight as she attempted to force a smile.

 “Hey,” Maggie answered, “What are you reading?”

 She stepped a little closer to Alex, so she could see the title of the book clearly. “Chicken Soup for the Preteen Soul? Alex, that was a gift from Mon-El, and you were all ready to throw it back in his face when he first gave it to us. Now you’re reading it for kicks? Babe, what is going on?”

 “Nothing!” Alex insisted, “I was just bored, and it was lying around,”

 Maggie narrowed her eyes, “Alex. Come on, you can tell me. I’m here to listen.”

 Alex sighed, and looked away from Maggie. She couldn’t meet her eyes, lest she spill her heart out to her. “Maggie…”

 “Alex, look at me,” Maggie pleaded, and when Alex finally did, she explained, “Look. You don’t have to tell me if you really don’t want to. But, Alex, I know you. There’s something bothering you, and you think you’re weak for it. You think you need to protect us from it, to keep it inside, so that I, or Kara, or J’onn, or James, or even Winn, don’t have to worry about it.”

 Alex started to shake her head, but Maggie continued, “Alex, you are not weak for being afraid. You are not frail for allowing yourself to be vulnerable. You’ve been through hell that most people can’t even imagine, and you came out of it on the other side as if nothing had even happened. You don’t have to deny your feelings, Alex. We’re not going to think of you as any less for it. The people you love are here for you. Always. You know why?” she asked, tilting Alex’s chin up, “Because the people you love, love you, too. I love you. And, we want to be there for you the same as you’ve always been there for us.”

 At that, a sob escaped Alex’s lips, and, this time, she allowed herself to completely, finally, break down. She clung to Maggie, and Maggie held her steady through her tears, even as her body shook with the force of her sobs. Maggie held her, and stroked her hair, and when the sobs finally subsided, she was there to listen.

 “I…” started Alex, sitting up, “I’ve never been so scared for my life. I mean, I’ve been in life or death situations before, but… I’ve always fought my way through the fear. This time… I couldn’t- I didn’t have anyone to take it out on. It was just me, and I wasn’t sure if I would make it. I just knew I had to keep going, because for the first time,” she met Maggie’s gaze, “I had a life to look forward to.”

 Maggie squeezed her hand and gave her a slight nod, urging her to go on.

 “I mean, I’ve always had Kara, and there was no way I was leaving her without her sister there to protect her, especially with everything going on with Mon-El, and her feelings for Lena, but… Kara’s always had a life of her own. She’s always had her own friends, and God knows she can protect herself. She doesn’t _need_ me. But, this time, things were different. This time, I have a life of my own, too. For the first time, I have a future to look forward to. A future with you, and I didn’t want to lose that.”

 “Alex…” Maggie gasped, “You will _always_ have a future with me.”

 “I’m glad, because I’m planning on forever,” Alex said, and when words failed her, she leaned over and kissed Maggie, softly, translating all the feelings she couldn’t find the words for into warmth, into love.

 And, when Kara comes home, she notices that something about her sister seems lighter, her smiles coming easier, more genuine, and she gives Maggie a grateful smile, and a squeeze of her hand, because she’s the one person that can make her sister open up like that, who can make her sister smile like that.

* * *

 

 It takes a while, but eventually, the nightmares become easier to come out of for Alex, and getting into bed seems less daunting, because every time she wakes up with her hands shaking, with her body covered in sweat, her mind filled with images of horror, she’s steadied by the woman she knows will always be there for her, whispering soft reminders of love, of safety, of home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my Tumblr Page


	19. The Gift of Kale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The time Kara tried kale with Lena and didn't completely hate it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from anon: The time when Lena made Kara eat kale.
> 
> I'm gonna be honest, I had way to much fun writing this, even though I had to write the second half on my phone. Anyway, enjoy!

“Ma’ams?” The waiter at National City’s hottest new health craze restaurant asked, “Are you ready to order?”

Lena looked to Kara, and when she flashed back a bright smile, Lena nodded at the waiter.

“Yes, we are.”

“Alright, then,” The waiter flipped open his tablet, “What can I get you guys today?”

Kara was counting on Lena ordering first, because she herself had barely even looked at the menu. She didn’t even recognize half of the names that were on there, and she planned to just order the same thing Lena was getting.

And, true to form, Lena did not disappoint.

“I’ll have a mushroom kale rice bowl, please, and a kale apple juice.”

“Ok,” the waiter turned to Kara. “And, what can I get for you, ma’am?”

“Umm, I’ll have the same,” Kara told him, and Lena’s eyebrows shot up.

“Are you sure, Kara? Kale is not for everyone. You might enjoy some of their high fiber pita wraps better,” she suggested.

“Oh, I think I’ll be fine. I love kale!” The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. She had never even had kale ever in her life before. She was more of a Chinese takeout and pizza person, but when it came to Lena, she was willing to try anything.

“Alrighty, then. Two mushroom kale rice bowls, and two kale apple juices coming right up!” The waiter collected their menus and was on his way.

When Kara turned back to Lena, she was met with a curious grin.

“What?” she asked, a smile creeping onto her own face to match Lena’s.

“Nothing, I just didn’t realize you were such a fan of kale,” Lena quirked an eyebrow, and Kara felt a blush creeping up her cheeks.

“Well, who can resist kale?” Kara asked, and Lena broke out into a chuckle.

Kara couldn’t help but notice how Lena’s green eyes sparkled when she smiled, and the way they crinkled in just the most perfect way.

“Kara?” Lena’s voice snapped her out of her daze.

“Yeah.” Kara shook her head, trying to clear her head of thoughts of how much she loved to make Lena smile. They were just friends, nothing more. “Yeah, sorry, I was just thinking about a deadline I had for Snapper. I just need to get my mind off work,” she lied.

“Ah, I’m sure we can do something about that,” Lena said, “So, how are things with Mike?”

Kara’s breath hitched, remembering the talk Maggie and Alex had had with her about gaslighting and abusive behaviour that had led to her breaking up with Mon-El. “Mike? Oh, right, umm… that didn’t work out.”

“I see…” Lena’s eyebrows went up ever so slightly, and, for a second, Kara thought she saw a hint of relief in her eyes. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Yeah, some things just aren’t built to last,” Kara told her, and their eyes met over the table.

Just then, the waiter came back with their food, and set it down in front of them, breaking their eye contact, and Kara let out a breath she didn’t even realize she was holding.

“Here you are, two mushroom kale rice bowls, and kale apple juices to wash them down with. Enjoy!”

“Thank you!” both Lena and Kara said at the same time, and Kara lowered her eyes. She could’ve sworn that, for a second before she looked away, there was a hint of something more in Lena’s eyes. A question, almost.

So, when the waiter left, instead of talking, Kara decided to stuff her face with a mouthful of kale, and she choked.

It was all he could do to not spit it out, it tasted awful. But she tried to suck it up and force the food down, because she didn’t want to make a fuss while lena was trying to enjoy her food.

Of course, Lena noticed Kara’s discomfort, and she covered her mouth with a hand as she struggled to contain her laughter.

“You haven’t ever had kale before, have you, Kara?” She asked, and Kara could feel her face getting hot again.

“Wha- I- no,” Kara admitted, and Lena laughed again.

“Come on,” she said, “there’s a great Japanese restaurant right across the street from here. I’m sure you’ll find something a lot more your speed there.”

“What? No!” Kara exclaimed, “You haven’t even gotten a chance to properly try your food. I don’t wanna ruin your first experience here.”

“Kara,” Lena’s voice was soft, “it was never about the restaurant. As long as I’m with you, I’m sure the experience will be perfect.”

“Lena…” Kara began, but thought better of it, and instead just said, “okay.”

So, Lena paid the ridiculously expensive bill, and they walked the way across the street.

* * *

 

Kara was in the middle of stuffing her face with stir fried pork udon when her phone rang. The second she saw the caller ID, she knew it wasn’t going to be anything good. She gave Lena an apologetic look, and picked up.

“Ma'am,” Vasquez’s voice sounded urgent. “I’m sorry to disturb you on your day off, but there’s a gang of Infernians attacking National City Bank, and we need you down there.”

“I’ll be there,” Kara responded immediately, albeit reluctantly.

She turned to Lena, and tried to come up with an excuse.

“Lena, I-” she started, but Lena just smiled mischievously at her.

“I know,” she said, gesturing to the little TV above the bar set to the news, where the bank could be seen amidst a sea of flames. “Duty calls.”

And then, Lena did something that made Kara almost float up off the floor in surprise; she leaned over the table, and kissed Kara softly on the cheek.

“Take care Supergirl,” she whispered, and left Kara there, stunned, to go and pay the bill.

Slowly, hesitantly, Kara got up and left the restaurant. She wanted to continue where they left off, but first, she had to fulfill her duty as Supergirl.

And, all she could think as she flew away was that maybe kale wasn’t so bad, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	20. The Power of Ice Cream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Kara loses her job and breaks up with Mon-El, Lena pays her a visit with tons of ice cream, and they chill.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from boisjoli91-blog: So I had this idea, but I'm definitely not a writer. Hope you like it: Lena learns Kara got fired and she feels guilty so she drops by Kara's place with toooones of different ice cream and starts rambling about how she knows the break-up-with-Mon-El flavour was rocky road and romantic-comedy-movie is vanilla and so on and then says: and so I didn't know what was I-just-got-fired flavour was so I bought all of them. Or something like that and then they end up together cause that's always fun :D

Lena nervously watched the circular elevator buttons go dark one by one as she neared Kara’s floor. The second Kara had called her and told her the news, she grabbed Jess and made her way over to Kara’s loft. But, before that, she made a quick stop at the store, and with her assistant’s help, she picked up a few things she thought might cheer Kara up.

 “Ms. Luthor, is all this really necessary?” Jess asked Lena, eyeing the ever-growing pile of Ben and Jerry’s in front of her, as the L-Corp CEO grabbed every flavour of ice cream the store had to offer, dumping them into her increasingly heavier shopping cart, “I’m sure some flowers will do.”

 “I’m afraid flowers won’t suffice today, Jess,” Lena explained, “This is a problem that won’t go away easily. It requires one to throw food at it.”

 And, she did exactly that, picking up potstickers on the way to Kara’s apartment, as well as ordering a couple pizzas, just in case it was one of those nights.

 “Alright, thank you, Jess,” Lena said when they finally got to Kara’s building, “You can take the car back to your apartment.”

 Lena took the several heavy bags of ice cream from Jess, and carefully got out of the car.

 “Ms. Luthor?” Jess called from the open window, and Lena turned around to face her, “You’ll do great. Kara really likes you.”

 At that, Lena’s heart dropped, and she felt a surge of panic.

 “Is it really that obvious?” She inquired, and Jess just laughed.

 “Oh, come on, Ms. Luthor, I’m your assistant. I know you well enough to know that you never drop all your plans to take time out for just _anyone_. Kara’s clearly special to you. Besides,” she added, with a knowing smile, “she’s not good at hiding her feelings for you, either, with all her giggling and blushing. Like I said, you’ll do great.”

 Lena flashed back a grateful smile, just as the car drove away.

 So, there she was, standing in the painstakingly slow elevator of Kara’s building, arms heavy with the weight of several pints of various ice creams, mind racing.

 Was it really true what Jess had said? Did Kara truly like her? Well, there was only one way to find out. So, when the elevator came to a rattling stop, she walked out with all the confidence she could muster up, and hid all of her nervousness behind a mask of charm, which was something she had gotten pretty good at, being a Luthor, and the CEO of a multi-billion dollar business. She made her way down the hall, up to Kara’s door, and just as she was about to knock, she heard the lock click, and the door swung open, as if by some force of nature.

 “Lena!” Kara exclaimed, “What are you doing here?”

 Lena hesitated. Maybe it hadn’t been the best idea to show up at the loft unannounced in the middle of the night, but seeing Kara’s warm smile and genuinely excited expression, despite the fact that Lena could tell she had clearly been crying, from the way her eyes were slightly red and puffy, she figured maybe it had been the right move, after all.

 “I thought you might want some company,” Lena said, quirking her brow ever so slightly, and then more seriously, “I know you’ve had a long day.”

 Kara looked at her, scanning her face pensively.

 Lifting her arm up to display the grocery bag full of ice cream and the takeout bag of potstickers, Lena added, “And, I brought treats, too.”

 At that, Kara’s face lit up, and she reached for the takeout bag. “Potstickers! You know me so well!”

 Lena chuckled as Kara popped a potsticker into her mouth, and looked inside the loft expectantly.

 “Oh!” Kara exclaimed, moving away from the door, “Right! Come on in.”

 As Lena walked into the apartment, she was unsurprised to find that _The Sound of Music_ was playing on the television. She knew Kara well enough to know that she always turned to musicals at the end of a bad day.

 “Ah one of those nights huh?” Lena asked, turning to Kara.

 “Yeah, like you said,” Kara told her, “It’s been a long day.”

 “Well, I know how you like to eat when you’re stressed, so how about we grab a pint, and you can tell me all about it?”

 “That sounds good!” Kara smiled, and Lena lost herself in Kara’s blue eyes, in her full, wholehearted grin, and she wished she could live in that moment forever. But, then the moment was over, and Kara was opening the bag of ice cream on the counter, and Kara was asking her something.

 “Lena! How much ice cream did you get?” Kara was struggling to contain her laughter. “You must have emptied out the whole store with this haul!”

 Lena’s face grew hot as she attempted to explain. “Well… I didn’t know what flavour tonight warranted. I mean, I figured the best flavour for a break up is rocky road.”

 “Naturally,” Kara agreed.

 “Right, and I know how much you like cookie dough, too.”

 “I mean, who doesn’t?” Kara asked.

 “Exactly, and I figured vanilla would be best for watching musicals.”

 “Well, you’re not wrong,” Kara said.

 “Yeah, and I wasn’t sure what getting fired called for, so I just went ahead and grabbed some mint chocolate chip and some salted caramel.”

 “Genius.” Kara concurred.

 “And, I know how much you love chocolate fudge brownie, so of course I got that, too.”

 “Well, that’s as good an explanation as any,” Kara smiled gratefully, and then, reaching out for Lena’s hand across the counter, she said, “What would I do without you?”

 A shiver passed through Lena at Kara’s touch, and she let out a small gasp. She tried to cover it up by saying something to make Kara equally as flustered, but before she got the chance, the bell rang.

 “That must be the pizza,” Lena said, as she made her way to the door, and when she opened it, she saw that she was right.

 “Oh, hey, Farha!” Kara called when she saw the delivery girl.

 “Hey, there’s my favourite customer!” Farha grinned back.

 “How’s school?” Kara asked, and Lena wondered just how well Kara knew her delivery people.

 “Eh, same old, same old. But, you’ll be the first to know if something interesting happens.” And, turning to Lena, she said, “That’ll be twenty dollars, fifteen cents.”

 After paying for the pizza, Lena walked to the couch, where Kara was already setting down plates.

 “What?” Kara asked when she saw Lena staring at her thoughtfully.

 “Nothing, just… do you know all the delivery people in this town?” she inquired, with a quirk of her brow.

 At that, Kara let out a laugh, and nodded. “It never hurts to get to know the people who deliver the stuff of life right to your front door.”

 Lena laughed, and then remembered why she was there. Even though Kara was smiling right now, Lena knew she was in a bad place, with everything that was going on.

 “So,” she said, “What do you need right now?”

 Kara sighed and thought for a moment.

 “Can we just watch musicals and eat our weight in potstickers, pizza, and ice cream?”

 “That sounds like a plan to me,” Lena smiled, and sat down on the couch next to Kara.

 As the night went on, the gap between them on the couch got smaller and smaller, until Kara’s head was leaning on Lena’s shoulder, and Lena’s arm was around her.

 “I’m really glad you came, Lena,” Kara’s voice was heavy with sleep, and Lena smiled to herself, knowing, as she drifted off to sleep, that Kara was telling the truth. Knowing, that for the first time in her life, she had found someone who didn’t see her as a means to an end, or a nuisance, but as a friend. Maybe even something more, but that was a topic for the morning, when the sorrows of the night gave way to the light of day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	21. James is Guardian, and Guardian is James

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> James has a special bond with Marcus from the moment he meets him, and it takes him a while to figure it out, but eventually, he learns what leads them to trust each other so much.

He’s tense, and he’s on the lookout. He’s well aware that he’s only human, and that he’s up against a telekinetic, telepathic alien. He knows that this is dangerous, and he should call Supergirl, but he’s not thinking straight. It’s been a long day, and he’s been working so hard to prove himself. Right now, he just needs to feel like he’s making a difference. So, when Brian gives up the location to the Phorian’s house, James gets there as fast as he can, not ready to let the alien get away again.

 He doesn’t know what he expected walking in the door, but it wasn’t this. What he sees is not the house of the cold, soulless alien with the ability to commit mass murder that he saw that morning. Instead, it is a scene of domesticity, full of frames hanging from the wall with photographs of a mother with her son, toys neatly lining the shelves. Just another normal, picture perfect family home.

 The more he walks through the house, the more confused he gets about what prompted the alien that ravaged the market to do such a thing. As he gets to the kitchen, he sees a pile of drawings on the table, left out as if abandoned in a hurry. A picture on the wall catches his eye, a young boy, no older than ten years old.

 It’s just as he’s looking at the picture that he hears a door open behind him, and the sound of footsteps making their way toward the door. He swivels around to see the same boy that he saw in the picture, struggling to open the door.

 “Wait,” he calls, and he softens at the terrified, yet brave expression on the boy’s face as he presses his back against the door and faces the man in the mask.

 “It’s okay,” James tells him “I’m not going to hurt you.” But it’s not enough. The boy is still shaking with fear, and in that split second, James makes a decision. He pulls his helmet off, revealing his identity for the first time since he took up the role of Guardian.

 “It’s alright, see?” He says, and he sees the boy’s shoulders relax a little as he bends down on one knee and brings his face level with him, “I’m not going to hurt you.”

 The boy reaches for his face, and James softly takes his hand in his own, reassuringly, firmly, and he notices a change in the boy’s eyes, something that resembles trust.

 “I’m gonna take you somewhere safe,” he tells him, and the boy just nods. He was right, then. The boy _did_ trust him.

* * *

 

 He watches as Alex tries to communicate with the boy. _Marcus_. His name is Marcus, if Winn’s databases are correct.

 He observes as Marcus keeps up his silence, as he pushes the plate of burgers away from himself, his wariness of Alex plain on his face, and he listens when Winn says, “Maybe she should give him, like, some action figures, right? Like- like if somebody had given me action figures when they interrogated me about my dad when I was ten, like, I- I- I would’ve sung like a canary, I’m just saying.”

 James also notices that behind Winn’s humorous tone is a carefully cloaked pain. He makes a mental note to talk to Winn about that later, but right now, he has a point. Marcus is just a kid, and this isn’t the way to go about things with him.

 “Look, this kid’s completely shut down,” James explained, “and, pulling him into an interrogation room like some criminal off the street, I- I don’t think is the best way to get him to open up.”

 “So,” started J’onn “you’re not only a masked vigilante and a photographer, you’re also a child psychologist now?”

 James tried not to let the words sting too much, and instead, brought the topic back to Marcus.

 “I’m just saying, this kid’s life has been upended, badly, okay? First, he’s a refugee. Then, his mom ends up missing, and- and, if he’s turned on the TV at _all_ since yesterday, all he’s seen are adults yelling about her, calling for blood. I wouldn’t trust anybody either, if I was this kid.”

 “James is right,” Alex agrees, as she comes back into the room. “I’ve been in there for hours, and all he does is just stare at the camera.”

 For some reason, hearing Alex admit it makes it real, and it’s all James can do to let his frustration out with a sigh as he paces from one side of the room to the other.

 “He’s looking at you,” Alex says, and it takes a moment for James to realize she’s talking about him.

 “At- at me? Through a wall, Alex?” he asks with a laugh, as Alex gently pushes him across the room, testing out her theory, and James realizes she’s right. Marcus’ head turns to follow the path he takes toward the monitor.

 “He’s an alien with telekinetic _and_ telepathic powers,” Alex reminds him, and James watches through the monitor as Marcus mirrors his actions from the other side of the wall.

 “Hey, look at that, it’s like the…the…the Mona Lisa,” Winn joked, and James turned back to Alex.

 “You said that he connected with you,” Alex said, ignoring Winn.

 “He thought the Guardian was a monster,” said, “and then I took my helmet off. I guess he saw someone who looked like him.”

 “He identified with you, James,” Alex told him.

 “Are you saying you want Mr. Olsen to question the boy?” J’onn asked, and Alex turned to him.

 “Marcus doesn’t trust me,” she said, “okay? But, he could trust James. I mean, out of here, in a more conducive environment. We have to find his mother before she attacks again.”

 “If I can help this kid,” James said, reminding J’onn of the importance of the situation, “I’d like to.”

 “Alright,” J’onn nodded, “take the day, see if you can find out where his mother is. We’ll check in with you later.”

 As Alex and J’onn walked away, James let out a breath he hadn’t even realized he’d been holding in. Now that he could get Marcus out of here, he wasn’t sure how he was going to get him to talk.

 “Hey,” Winn said, nudging his arm slightly from over his monitors, “you can deal with him.”

 And, with that, James was alone. Winn was right. If anyone could do this, it was James.

He didn’t know what it was quite yet, but there was something bonding him to the boy. 

* * *

They’re in his office at Catco, talking about cameras when Marcus tells James about his father, and it hits him.

 The reason James feels so connected to this young boy is because he sees himself in Marcus’ eyes. He sees himself in the way Marcus walks, in the way he talks, in the way that he’s gone through so much, and yet, he’s still taking care of himself.

 In Marcus, he sees a young, scared, lonely kid, who just needs someone right now, and something inside him breaks, because that used to be him. Except, this time, he’s around to give Marcus what no one ever gave him. This time, he’s around to help Marcus get through what he hid from behind the camera his dad gave him, and he knows what he has to do.

 James knows how important Marcus’ mom is to him, and how vital it is for him to have her with him, and there is no way in hell James is about to let Marcus lose her, too. James is going to find Marcus’ mother, and he won’t stop until he does.

 He won’t stop, because that’s who he is. Because James is Guardian, and Guardian is James.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	22. Been Too Long

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The world is ending, and all Kara can think is that she needs Cat Grant.

It’s been way too long.

The entire world seems like it’s about to end, and all Kara can think, is that it’s been way too long.

Way too long since she got a pep talk. Way too long since she had been given the harsh truth, and a life lesson to go with it. Way too long since she had been reminded to reflect on her actions, and been told that it was okay to make mistakes, so long as you learned from them.

And, now, Lena was gone. Queen Rhea had abducted her in the heat of the moment, and Kara had only herself to blame. She should’ve protected Lena more. She made a promise to Lena that she would always be there for her, and she broke it, all before she ever got the chance to tell Lena how she really felt about her, what all those smiles, and all that blushing meant. Now… well, now, who even knew if she would ever get the opportunity to tell Lena? 

Even if Kara brought her back home safely, no, when Kara brought her home safely, who was to say that Lena would forgive her? Who knew what Rhea was doing to Lena right now, or where she had taken her?

All Kara knew, was that she felt immense rage, like she’d never felt before. She felt rage at herself for not being able to save everyone, at Rhea for taking away the things she cared about, at her parents for abandoning her to protect an entire world, all on her own. Her anger was blinding, clouding her judgement so that she couldn’t see any way to fix things other than to destroy everything in sight, and she terrified herself.

For months, she had been internalizing all her anger, because she felt that she needed to, because she was afraid of confrontation. So, she dated Mon-El, and gave him chance upon chance to ‘prove’ himself to her. She had hidden her true feelings for Lena, and she hadn’t let herself take a moment to breathe, because if she did, she would have to face the truth. And, in all that time, she had allowed herself to change so much that she barely even recognized herself anymore.

She couldn’t think straight, and she needed someone who could understand, someone who could snap her out of her cycle of self-loathing, who could make her hold her head up high, own her mistakes, and get to solving them with a level head.

That was the least she needed if she was going to go about saving a planet on her own. Otherwise, she thought she might explode. It was all too much to take, and she wished she had someone to help ease the load, because she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. Literally.

She knew what she had to do, yet she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Wouldn’t it just make things worse? She didn’t want to make this anyone else’s issue if she didn’t have to. 

Although, that would be the least of her problems if she let the world be ravaged by Rhea’s Daxamite army. Maybe it was the smarter move to just do it.

So, she picked up her phone, and dialled the number that she already had memorized by heart, the phone number that she had stopped herself from dialing so many times before, and she waited with bated breath as the call picked up, as the line started ringing.

The phone only rang twice before the person on the other end picked up, and Kara heard a familiar voice.

“Kiera. I see you’ve managed to get yourself into a bigger mess than usual.”

“Ms. Grant,” Kara breathed, “I need you.”

She heard a sharp intake of breath from the other end of the receiver. “I thought you’d never ask,” and then, right before she hung up, she said, “I’ll be on my way, Kara.”


	23. The Invasion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What goes through Alex's head at the beginning of the Daxamite invasion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from anon: Alex imagines the worst when the phone disconnects with Maggie.

Her heart drops and breath comes heavy when she sees the Daxamite ships heading for National City. There’s no time to think, and there’s no time to react, and the situation is exactly what Alex Danvers is trained for, but right now, there is only one thing on her mind. There were several ships heading downtown, where Alex was sure Maggie was working at the police station. 

The mere thought of Maggie being in danger terrified her. Maggie, out patrolling the streets, protecting the people of National City, as always. Maggie, who never failed to put her life on the line to protect others, who never backed down from a fight if it meant being sure the people she had vowed to look after were safe. Maggie, the woman that Alex loved, out on the frontlines, battling alien threats. It wasn’t right for her to be out there and Alex to be in here. 

But, Alex had a job to do, and there were people looking up to her to tell them what to do next. She paused a moment. It was getting increasingly difficult to think, what with her worrying about Maggie, and Queen Rhea spreading her propaganda over almost every laptop, pc, or phone in the DEO. But Alex is prepared for this. She can handle this. So, she takes a breath and turns back to the monitors displaying the Daxamite ships. One was headed right for them. She looked to her second in command.

“Get ready. We have incoming threats. I want everyone suited up and prepared for an attack.” 

“Yes, ma’am,” her deputy turned and sounded the alert.

Just as she reaches for her phone, Alex feels it buzzing in her pocket, and a wave of relief passes through her as she looks at the caller ID. Maggie.

“Danvers, I’m in the city,” Maggie’s voice comes out garbled. The cell signal was just barely working.

Alex tries to keep herself together, and to block out Rhea’s voice so that she can hear Maggie better. 

“Are you okay?”

“They’re everywhere, Alex. The Daxamites troops are everywhere.” Alex’s breath hitches, and her eyes widen as she tries to think of something to say, something to do to help the woman she loves, but even as she wracks her brain for ideas, she can hear Winn’s panicked voice in her other ear from across the room.

“Guys, we have transmat signals all across downtown. Our- our satellite systems are crashed.”

There is so much going on, and noise coming from all around her, from the DEO agents’ frantic preparations, Rhea’s endless demands for everyone to surrender, and Winn’s alarmed voice updating them on the situation of the Daxamite ships, to the sounds of yelling and gunfire behind Maggie.

So, she tries to focus on the one thing still keeping her grounded. She focuses on Maggie’s voice. Until, with a final, “Alex, I-”, Maggie’s voice cuts off.

Alex’s heart fills with dread as all the scenarios of what could have possibly caused the phone to disconnect run through her head. She can’t lose Maggie, not like this. Not when she had just been kidnapped and barely escaped with her life mere weeks ago. There is still so much they haven’t done together.

The thought of losing Maggie keeps her frozen in place with terror, and her mouth is dry.

“Maggie?” She breathes the name out like she doesn’t know if she’ll ever say it again, and looks at the blank screen of her phone, hoping against hope that Maggie os ok, that she’ll somehow call back, somehow get in touch again.

She lets out a breath that she didn’t even know she was holding, and turns to Winn.

“They’ve attacked the NCPD,” she informed him, walking closer to him, trying to remind herself that everything was going to be okay. Winn was here, and they were going to get through this together. They were going to find Maggie and James, regroup with Kara and J’onn, and they were going to get through this together, as a family.

But when Winn asked her, “Is Maggie safe?” it was all she could do to try to keep a straight face and sigh, not daring to answer until she knew better. “W- what are we going to do?” he asked, when he noticed her reluctance to answer.

She tried to respond, to reassure Winn that everything was going to be okay, because even though she wasn’t sure if it was, he was her brother. And, right now, her brother was terrified and in serious need of comfort. But before she got the chance, a team of Daxamite foot soldiers teleported into the DEO and opened fire on the bullpen. Alex whipped out her gun and took down two soldiers immediately, simultaneously pushing Winn under the cover of the table.

“Everybody evacuate!” she yelled, her instincts kicking in, diving under the table with Winn.

“Go!” she told him when she was sure his path was clear.

“Supergirl, we’re under attack,” she called out into her earpiece, which was connected to her sister, “I’ve evacuated the DEO.”

“Hang on, I’m almost there!” Supergirl’s voice was a yell as she tried to be heard over the rushing of the wind around her.

“There’s no time,” Alex responded, an escape plan already working itself out in her head.

“Alright, I’ll meet you outside,” Supergirl replied, and Alex was sure she was thinking the same thing.

Alex took a second to collect her thoughts. It was a risky escape, but a necessary one. They hadn’t attempted this since they were teenagers, still testing the limits of Kara’s abilities.

But, she had never been one to think twice of risks over reward, and if that reward meant that she could last another few hours so that she could be able to locate her girlfriend and help save the world? There was nothing to stop her from going for it.

So, she ran up, shot the soldier closest to her in the chest, slid under the weapon of another, shooting a third in the side, dodging fire from the several Daxamites gathered around her in attempt to stop her, and she made her way out to the balcony.

In a split second, she calculated the distance she needed to be from the edge, and the height she would need to get to, and when she was sure she had it right, she leapt, twisting her body around at the same time, so that she could fire one last shot at the remaining Daxamite, before hurtling to the ground at a startling speed, until right at he last moment, her sister caught her. 

“We need to get somewhere safe,” Kara told her, now, in her sister’s strong, secure arms, Alex had faith once again that everything would turn out alright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts or requests, my inbox is always open on my [Tumblr Page](http://strongwomenarethebomb.tumblr.com/)


	24. The Proposal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The sanvers kiss that we were all robbed of after the proposal.

She sees how upset Kara is, and she sees Alex talking to her and she sees how worried Alex is about her sister, so she waits. Waits, because she knows how much it pains Alex to see her sister this heartbroken. She knows that as much as Kara needs her sister right now, Alex needs someone to remind her that Kara will be okay. She needs someone to remind her not to blame herself, because when bad things happen to those she loves, that’s always Alex’s first instinct.

So, Maggie waits until Alex gets a chance to talk to Kara, and when Kara flies away, Maggie is right there behind Alex with a hug. She’s right there with open arms, open ears, and the truth.

“She’ll be okay,” she says, feeling Alex lean back into her, putting their heads together.

“I hope so.”

Maggie regards Alex for a moment.

“Hey,” she says, stepping back, looking Alex in the eyes, “I know the Danvers girls. You don’t break easy-”

“Marry me,” Alex cuts in, searching her eyes with a question.

For a moment, Maggie is caught off guard, her mind racing, and she’s not sure if she’s heard Alex right.

“Excuse me?” She asks, and this time, Alex looked at her with more certainty, her voice sounding surer.

“Seriously.” Alex nods, seemingly convincing herself as she says the words, and continues with a resolved shrug, “Marry me. Please.”

This time, there is no doubt in Maggie’s mind about what Alex is asking her, and she doesn’t even have to think about it before she breaks out in the widest grin that she only gets when she’s with Alex, and she swears she’s never wanted anything in the world more.

But, she can’t find the words to express how strongly she feels, so instead, she cups Alex’s face with her hands gently, looking into her eyes, seeing the steadiness, the resolution in them, and knowing. Knowing that, no, she’s not dreaming this, it’s all really happening. Alex really wants this, really wants her.

Then, Alex returns her smile, leaning down to meet Maggie’s forehead with her own, and Maggie’s heart floods with such immense joy that it’s all she can do to finally close the gap between them and kiss Alex.

Immediately, she feels adrenaline coursing through her veins, and all her other worries melt away, because they’re here, they’re alive, they’re safe, and Alex is kissing her with such passion that she feels like they’re the only two people in the world.

She’s absolutely giddy, and from the way Alex is smiling into her mouth, she knows that the feeling is mutual.

When they finally pull away and look at each other, faces flush with the heat of the moment, she notices an impish grin on Alex’s face.

“What?” she asks with a curious smile, anticipating a dorky response from her fiancé.

“So, you’re saying you like me? Because that’s- that’s what I’m getting,” Alex says.

“Yeah, you nerd,” Maggie responds with a snort, “I’m saying I love you, Alex Danvers.”

At that, Alex’s smile brightens even more.

“I love you, too, Maggie Sawyer.”


	25. Never Have I Ever

They’d been drinking. A lot. Even Kara had cracked open the bottle of Aldebaran rum M’gann had given her. It was Lucy who suggested they play ‘never have I ever’, and at first, almost everyone but Kara was down to play. That didn’t last long.

 It started off fairly innocently, with Kara being the first to go. “Never have I ever… been arrested.”

 Almost everyone but Kara drank to that, including Winn, who shrugged when Kara looked at him, surprised.

 “What? I may have hacked a federal database or two when I was a kid.” Jerking his thumb towards James, he added, “I’m more surprised about _this_ guy. What did Jimmy Olsen do to get himself arrested?”

 “Eh, well, I’ve had my fun,” James said, not revealing much about the circumstances of his arrest.

 “Ok, ok, next!” Lucy drunkenly shouted. It was Lena’s turn, and everyone turned to her expectantly.

 This was Lena’s first game night, and she was just beginning to get comfortable with the rest of the gang besides Kara, so all eyes were on her, waiting to hear what she would come up with.

 “Never have I ever…” Lena started, and then she thought for a moment. “Never have I ever had a near death experience.”

 At that, everyone raised their glasses to their lips, including Lena herself, and she remembered that she was sitting in a room full of heroes. She wondered what these people would be doing if they led normal lives, and she couldn’t even fathom a reality where Kara wasn’t out every day saving the world. It was such a big part of who she was, of who all of them were.

 “Ok, ok, let’s get to the good stuff,” Lucy prompted, “make this one count, Danvers.”

 Next was Alex, and the mischievous glint in her eyes as she looked between Kara and Lena was enough to let Kara know that his question was going to be something awkward for the rest of them to answer.

 “Never have I ever had a crush on Supergirl,” she said, and Kara groaned as everyone but her and Alex raised their glasses, but her eyes still went to Lena, who met her gaze with a knowing smile as she tossed her drink back, and Kara felt a familiar warmth creeping up her cheeks.

 “I’m not surprised,” Lucy finally broke the silence after a few seconds. “Alright, Sawyer,” she said, turning to Alex, “it’s your turn. And make it interesting.”

 “Alright,” Maggie said, returning Lucy’s smile, “Never have I ever… skinny dipped.”

 This time, everyone but Kara drank.

 “What?!” she exclaimed, looking around at everyone in confusion. “How- when- what?”

 She turned to Winn, who just shrugged and said, “I did it on a dare.”

 Then, Alex, who indifferently admitted, “High school party.”

 “Ditto,” said Lucy.

 “Same,” James agreed.

 “A pretty girl asked me to,” Maggie shrugged, and Winn flashed her a smile

 And, last but not least, Kara turned to Lena, who carefully met her gaze, and explained, “I went to an all girls boarding school in Ireland. Pretty conservative, but we had our moments.”

 Lena said it just nonchalantly enough that Kara’s face flushed with heat, and her hands went to her glasses, frantically readjusting them, not able to meet anyone’s eyes.

 “I think we should move on,” she managed, and Lena flashed her a sly smile as they all turned to Lucy.

 “Ok. Now it’s time to get real.” Lucy said with a devilish grin on her face, “Never have I ever hooked up with anyone at work.”

 She was the first to take a drink, and she looked expectantly at the rest of the group as they hesitantly eyed their glasses.

 As Lucy stared him down, James let out a long sigh.

 “Alright, fine, you got me,” he huffed, with a long swig.

 After a few seconds under Kara’s gaze, Winn broke too.

 “Alright, alright!” He tipped his glass back, and when he found Alex staring at him in disbelief, he said, “Hey! It was one time! Besides, you don’t get to judge. I’ve seen you kick out your entire crew more than a few times after Maggie snuck into the lab.”

 “Aha!” Lucy pointed at Maggie and Alex, “Take a drink!”

 Alex swatted at Winn’s head and groaned, leaning into her girlfriend, while Maggie avoided Lucy’s gaze with an eye roll.

 “Fine,” Maggie says, finally picking up her glass and knocking it back.

 Alex followed suit, and even the redness of her cheeks wasn’t enough to protect Winn from the severity of her glare.

 “It was only a few times,” Alex buried her face in her drink and made an effort to avoid her younger sister’s wide eyes. “Whatever, let’s move on.”

 But, before Winn had a chance to go, Lena tried to discretely take a sip from her beer, and failed.

 When she realized what it meant, Kara’s jaw dropped open and her hands immediately went to her glasses, furiously adjusting and readjusting them, her complexion turning a shade of red even darker than Alex’s.

 Lena caught a glimpse of her, and a small smirk formed on her lips.

 “Winn, you’re up,” she simply said, looking slightly embarrassed.

 “Ok,” Winn finally spoke up, moving back to his position next to Alex, because in the moment, she had forgotten her irritation at him, “never have I ever given a lap dance.”

 Once again, Lucy was the first to go, and without much provocation, James took a swig of his drink as well, at which Winn let out a little cheer.

 Once again, there was a slight silence as Lucy turned to Alex.

 “Come on, now, don’t be shy,” she urged.

 This time, Alex didn’t hesitate long before downing the rest of her drink, Maggie not far behind her.

 “If you think I’m shy, you don’t know me at all, Lane.” This time, Alex looked smug, the alcohol finally starting to make her bolder.

 Kara took a long, deep breath. “Alright, why don’t I go get some water? I think you guys are starting to get a little drunk.”

 Kara collected all the glasses and headed over to the kitchen. As she was pouring water for everyone, she saw Lena walking up to her.

 “Hey, you,” she said with a smile, “you all good?”

 “Yeah,” Lena replied, “just heading to the bathroom.”

 “Oh, sure,” Kara said, “wait, actually, the sink in the hall bathroom is on the fritz, so you can use the one in my room. Here, lemme show you.”

 “Hey,” called when they were in Kara’s room, “are _you_ good? Things got a little heated in there.”

 “What? Me? Pfft.” Kara sputtered, “yeah, I’m- I’m alright.”

 “Good,” Lena said, returning Kara’s sheepish smile with an understanding one of her own, “I’m glad.”

 Kara regarded Lena for a moment, seemingly making up her mind about something. “Ok, actually, I- I sort of have a question.”

 “You do?” Lena asked, “Shoot. I may just have an answer.”

 “Well… you know how you said you had a crush on Supergirl?”

 “Yeah…?” Lena urged her to go on, stepping closer to her.

 “Well, I was just wondering if that was true.”

 “You were?” Lena asked with a knowing smile.

 “Unh huh,” Kara replied.

 Lena was close enough to touch, and Kara’s eyes kept drifting to Lena’s mouth, even as she talked. She bit her lip to keep herself from doing anything drastic. She didn’t want to risk her friendship with Lena for a crush. Besides, Lena was clearly more interested in Supergirl than her, anyway.

 “Well,” Lena said, “it is true. But,” she added, “my heart belongs to someone else.”

 Kara’s heart sank, but she tried to force a smile, anyway.

 “Does it, now?” she asked, “And, who’s that lucky person?”

 Lena arched her eyebrow, but instead of saying anything, she leaned in and closed the gap between her and Kara.

 She kissed Kara gently, testing the waters at first, but when she felt Kara’s lips turn up as she kissed her back, Lena opened up, giving herself to Kara wholeheartedly, putting all of her unspoken feelings, all of the trust she had for Kara into this one kiss, so that maybe, just maybe, she could understand even a little bit of what she meant to Lena.

 She heard the door open behind them suddenly, and she jumped back. It was Winn.

 “Uh- I- wh- um- I was just going to the bathroom-” he stuttered, “you know what? I think I’m good, actually- so sorry.”

 And, with that, he scrambled out the door.

 “Well, that’s going to be awkward for a while,” Kara said, and Lena turned around to see a sheepish grin on her face. “Wait,” she said, feigning a curious expression, “so, who’s the lucky person again?”

 Lena laughed and cupped Kara’s face in her hands as she kissed her, hard and quick.

 “Does that answer your question?”

 “Hmm,” Kara said, pretending to think hard, “tell me again.”


	26. The Meaning of Intimacy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the first fic of the week for sanvers week. 
> 
> Basically a thought process of how far Maggie's come with Alex, and what intimacy means to her when it comes to Alex. Pretty much just a bunch of fluff.

It’s not like she’s never dated before. _God_ _knows she’s been around_ , but she’s never quite had anything like this before. She’s never had this kind of closeness with anybody.

 She’d known there was something different about Alex since the moment she met her, but it was only when she started working with her more that she realized how completely taken she was by Alex in a way she never had been before.

 At first, it was just small subtleties in the way that they interacted, the way that Alex always had her back and knew exactly what she was thinking in the line of combat. Then, it became something more.

 It turned into respect for Alex, and maybe something more. When Alex came out to her, it turned into a need for her ‘friend’ to be happy, and eventually, she knew that she felt something _more_ for Alex, but she couldn’t bring herself to admit it.

 Looking back now, it seems to her like a blaring sign of how much she cared about Alex. It’s not like she’d ever shied away from dating whomever she wanted before, but even then, she knew that if she allowed herself into Alex’s world like that, she might never leave, and that was too much for her to take. It was an entirely new concept to her.

 And, when she told Alex that she didn’t want to imagine her life without her in it, she wasn’t lying. The thought of losing Alex was terrifying, because she didn’t want to lose the first person in her life who’d really, truly cared about her, who she really, truly cared for. And, weirdly enough, her being shot had a good side to it, as well, because otherwise, she may have never had the guts to accept her feelings for this amazing woman, and to finally take the leap.

 And Maggie’s life had never been the same.

 She’d never known herself to be vulnerable, but with Alex, she couldn’t help but open up. For the first time since she was a kid, she gave all of herself to someone, and she was glad she did, because she finally knew what it meant to truly know someone.

 She thought she’d known what intimacy meant before, but damn had she been wrong. Being intimate didn’t mean having sex with someone, or simply calling them your girlfriend. Intimacy meant being able to share your deepest thoughts and feelings with someone. It meant being able to trust someone, not only with your life, but also with your emotions.

 And, the longer she was with Alex, the more she believed in the power of intimacy. Every day, she learned to open up a bit more. Every day, she grew more, until she was sitting there on Alex’s couch, dreading the words she was sure Alex would say after she found out that Maggie hadn’t told her the full truth about Emily, dreading the anger that was sure to come. Except it never did.

 Instead, Alex did the complete opposite. She somehow completely defied Maggie’s expectations and went beyond anything Maggie had ever dared to hope for from anyone.

 She proved to Maggie just how much she’d been paying attention, just how much she cared about her. She showed Maggie just how well she’d bothered to get to know her.

 Instead of the anger Maggie had been expecting, because that was how she always knew everyone in her life to react, Alex pointed out a truth to Maggie that she had never had it in herself to admit- she was terrified of letting people in because she was terrified of getting hurt again. She was guarded because she’d been let down one too many times.

 That was the day Maggie learned just how far she’d come with Alex Danvers. From then on, ride or die took on a new meaning for her. It wasn’t just something she said, it was in everything she did.

 It was in every kiss, every cuddle, every home cooked meal, and every blanket fort. Every day, Maggie was reminded that, yes, she got Alex to be herself, but Alex had done the same for her, and she didn’t even know just how much.

 Eventually, she stopped flinching every time she broke a plate and Alex opened her mouth, because she never did it to yell, or to blame Maggie. She was always there to support her, to tell her it was ok, because it wasn’t Maggie’s fault. It was just an accident. And Maggie gradually grew to accept that mindset, because yes, accidents happen, and no, not everything is her fault.

 She grew to admit to herself that yes, she is deserving of all the little moments, all the hand holding, all the sloppy kisses, all the pecks on the nose on sleepy Sunday mornings, all the mind blowing sex, and sometimes warm and tender sex, too, because it wasn’t about what Maggie could give Alex, it was about what they could do for each other, how they could help each other grow.

 And, grow they did. That was another thing that Maggie learned was intimacy- the ability to grow with each other, to learn from each other, and to implement changes in your daily life to be able to grow more.

 But, most of all, Maggie learned that intimacy was something she never dared hope to find. It was what she’d always thought she was too damaged for.

 It seemed foolish now, looking back, that she thought it wasn’t for her.

 What _it_ was, was the thing that Maggie was reminded of every time she looked at Alex, every time J’onn gave her a pat on the back, every time Kara gave her a warm, welcoming hug.

  _It_ was an inevitable thing that she’d known since she laid eyes on Alex on that airport strip months ago.

  _It_ was what Alex confirmed, lying in the infirmary bed at the DEO, and what drove Maggie’s heart to swell with joy as she finally said _it_ to the woman who changed her life;

 “I love you, Alex Danvers.”            


End file.
